Editorial Review

Even well-versed Biblical scholars might be perplexed if asked about Jabez, a little-known man listed in 1 Chronicles, chapter 4. Yet his simple petition is the cornerstone of Read more

Reviews (546)

"A bit shallow compared to other books on prayer..."
I can't add much to previous reviews except to say that if you're looking for a solid, detailed instruction on how to pray effectively, this may not be it.
Worst interpretation ever
I read this book years ago.My first impression was, "this seems like a lot to pull from such a small passage."I really felt that there was something wrong with it. A few months later, I read a textbook on Biblical Interpretation, and suddenly I could articulate what bothered me so much about this book.
There needs to be a Zero star rating for books like this
I wonder what Bruce Wilkinson was thinking when he wrote this book. There is no way a top-notch theologian could squeeze 96 pages out of one verse and keep it focused solely on Scripture. Well, Wilkinson wrote that much, but he threw in so many examples from life that it totally took away the meaning of the verse.
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Subjects:  1. Bible    2. Bible - Meditations - Old Testament    3. Bible Commentary    4. Bible.    5. Christianity    6. Chronicles, 1st, IV, 10    7. Devotional    8. General    9. History and criticism    10. O.T    11. O.T.    12. Prayer    13. Prayers    14. Religion    15. Religion - Inspirational/Spirituality    16. Spiritual    17. Worship    18. CHRISTIAN LIVING / SPIRITUAL GROWTH / PRAYER    19. Christian prayerbooks    20. Christian worship    21. Jabez    22. Religion / Christian Life   

Reviews (2)

Good Common-Sense Approach To Adversity
Rabbi Kushner's new book, "Overcoming Life's Disappointments" is a good friend to have if you've got some adversity in your life.He takes Moses, who spent 40 years wandering in the desert with his people and then was forbidden to enter the promised land with them, as his model on how a good person copes with trials.His advice is that life continues to have good things in store for us even after our dreams are shattered, if we don't let ourselves become hardened and embittered but keep our minds and hearts open.This sounds obvious enough, but it's easier said than done.Rabbi Kushner provides many stories from his long career to explain how we can cope.As a self-confessed admirer of Sigmund Freud, he's not big on the mystical or intuitive aspects of religion.He's more of a "duty is its own reward" kind of guy.But he is a preacher of what C.S. Lewis called "the Tao": the basic "way" that most religions have in common.If you are looking for essential answers, Rabbi Kushner is a good place to start.

Rabbi Kushner gives a few pointers in resiliency
One of the hardest things for anyone to learn, no matter where you are in life, or how much money you have, is coping with times when things don't turn out as you expect. Some people never recover, while others seem to sail past a disaster with hardly a break in stride. The trick isn't in what the disaster is, but how they've handled it.
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Subjects:  1. Adaptation, Psychological    2. Bible - Stories - Old Testament    3. Handbooks, manuals, etc    4. Inspirational    5. Inspirational - General    6. Jewish Law    7. Judaism - General    8. Life skills    9. Old Testament Commentary    10. Personal Satisfaction    11. Religion    12. Religion / Inspirational   

Reviews (30)

Intentional mistranslated words
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poor binding
the downfall to this version is the binding.The first day I flipped through the book pages started falling out.

From a gentil perspective
Honestly, I bought this book with the intention to learn Hebrew... I never made it, but now I use the translation and commentaries as a reference for my studies and I do recommend this book, nicely printed and easy to read.
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Subjects:  1. Bible - Study - Old Testament    2. Bibles    3. Bibles - Hebrew    4. Judaism - General    5. Judaism - Sacred Writings    6. Religion    7. Judaism    8. Old Testament   

Subjects:  1. Bible - Stories - General    2. Bible - Study - Old Testament    3. Christianity    4. General    5. Islam    6. Islam - General    7. Judaism    8. Judaism - General    9. Religion    10. Religion - Biblical Studies    11. Religion - Contemporary Issues    12. Cultural studies    13. Religion / General   

Reviews (8)

Once I Got Past The Arrogant Title...
I found this an enjoyable and thoughtful book. I would label much of it "educated speculation" but the emphasis on historical setting, the events that were contemporaneous to the Biblical authors, the historicity, the entomology, the fact that we can only guess at the literal meaning of certain colloquialisms used in the sacred texts, all that was priceless. One is not required to agree with Marc Z. Brettler's conclusions to read this book. Whether it serves to educate, enlighten, convince, or merely stimulate a good sound argument, this is a book worthy of the time it requires to read. Brettler may or may not be wrong but he cannot be accused of ignorance when it comes to his subject matter. Too often books about the Bible lean too far toward timidity in the author's reverence for the subject matter, or else the writer is an iconoclast intend on dismantling and disproving the Bible itself, and it was good to have the balance between those polarities that the more objective Brettler found. After reading this I was glad I took the occasion to consider western civilization's most revered texts from this purely scholarly perspective.

A Glaring Error
I am a proponent of the historical-metaphorical (critical) method of Bible study, and I found Brettler's interpretation of the Hebrew Bible to be fascinating and easy to read. But I cannot agree with his position that David did not kill Goliath.
How to Read the Bible
This is a really interesting book that takes a look at the Hebrew Bible using an historical-critical method.It is very accessable and readable, while still being a valuable scholarly work.Very, very interesting.You'll learn things you never heard about in Sunday School. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Bible    2. Bible - CriticismInterpretation - Old Testament    3. Bible - General    4. Bible.    5. Bibles - Hebrew    6. Criticism, interpretation, etc    7. General    8. Judaism - Sacred Writings    9. O.T    10. O.T.    11. Religion    12. Religion - Commentaries / Reference    13. Religion - Judaism    14. Biblical studies, criticism & exegesis    15. Hebrew   

Reviews (5)

Lewis gets to the heart of the matter
Thankfully this is not one of those books on the Psalms that will tell you that this or that Psalm is a lament or a cultic liturgy or an ode to someone bent on the succession of the Davidic monarchy. Lewis gets to the heart of matters, raising and answering questions that concern intelligent believers. For instance, what are we as Christians to make of imprecatory Psalms? Lewis considers not only those who write such Psalms, but also what has happened to them in life to get them to that point. Why so much talk about God's judgment? Lewis corrects the erroneous impression that judgment in the Psalms refers to God's punishment of evil doers. The primary sense is of a plaintiff pleading with God (the Judge) to pass judgment in their favor. What of the apparent self-righteousness of some of the Psalmists? Lewis says that all the talk about the Law is no Pharisaism but a the delight in Order: "The Order of the Divine mind, embodied in the Divine Law is beautiful." (53) Lewis' favorite is Psalm 19 and his writes about it in such a way as to make it come alive. The searching cleansing sun, is the searching cleansing Law. He identifies the key phrase as "there is nothing hid from the heat thereof" (19.6) That, for Lewis, describes the Law: :"luminous, severe, disinfectant, exultant (57).Finally, I must mention the surprising chapter on the subject of praise. Lewis writes that praise is not a matter of telling God how wonderful he is, but a way of expressing gratitude for what we care deeply about. Praise is something all human beings naturally do: we praise things and people that we value. When we praise them we complete our enjoyment of them through our words: "praise not merely expresses but completes the enjoyment" (81). Despite the fact that Lewis was not a theologian, he had a keener grasp of comparative religion, and Hebraic concepts than many biblical scholars. This is a book written by someone who has spent years praying the Psalms, not by someone who treats the Psalms as if they were an insect under a microscope.

Meditative
Bonhoeffer really drives you into appreciating the spiritual depth of the Psalms and their Christ centred significance. I found the book difficult to put down. A great spiritual read.
The Sensitivity of a Poet and the Honesty of a Scholar
With the sensitivity of a poet and the honesty of a scholar, C.S. Lewis delves into the Psalms. In doing so, he is not afraid to raise uncomfortable questions, such as how to understand the apparent self-righteousness and gleefulness of many psalmists; or the question whether God is an egocentric monarch who demands people to praise Him as if He needed such praise. Other issues Lewis deals with are the concept of Judgment in the Psalms, as well as their portrayals of death, nature, and the beauty of God. He also devotes two chapters to understanding the prophecies, or second meanings, in the Psalms
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Subjects:  1. Bible    2. Bible - Meditations - Old Testament    3. Bible - Study - Old Testament    4. Bible.    5. Criticism, interpretation, etc    6. Devotional    7. Inspirational - General    8. O.T    9. O.T.    10. Psalms    11. Religion    12. Religion - Biblical Studies    13. Religion - Inspirational/Spirituality    14. Religion / Christianity   

Reviews (9)

A GREAT REFERENCE
This little book is a handy reference; I keep it where I study and have given away several; it's a great gift for someone who is needing to find particular scripture and isn't sure where to look~or even has a need but doesn't know what scripture would apply~or just to thumb through for inspiration; well worth it's price!

Power in His Word
This is an excellent resource; one of Joyce's best books.In understanding how much power God's Word possesses and also how much power we have in speaking His Word out loud, we become grounded and centered in the promises of the Lord.This book also helps to understand our role in our relationship with Him; read His Word, meditate on His Word, believe His Word, speak His Word, Obey His Word.

LIFE CHANGING!
I am a Christian and have been most of my life.I have read the Bible off and on but ever since I have picked up this book I have been encouraged to pick up the Bible much more often!I have had this book for 8 days and I am amazed at the changes in myself and my family because of reading the Word outloud.It's a great springboard to start reading the Bible if you've not seen changes before.I more than highly recommend it! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Bible    2. Bible - Meditations - Old Testament    3. Bible - Study - General    4. Christianity    5. Christianity - Discipleship    6. Christianity - Evangelism    7. Christianity - Evangelism - Personal Witnessing    8. Devotional use    9. Old Testament    10. Oral communication    11. Prayer    12. Religion    13. Religion - Christian Life    14. Religious aspects    15. Religion / Inspirational   

Editorial Review

At a time when conflicts among three of the world's majorreligions--Islam, Judaism, and Christianity--are in the global spotlight, Bruce Feiler offers a stunning biography of the one man who unites all three religions: Abraham. "The most mesmerizing story of Abraham's life--his offering a son to God--plays a pivotal role in the holiest week of the Christian year, at Easter," writes Feiler. "The story is recited at the start of the holiest fortnight in Judaism, on Rosh Hashanah. The episode inspires the holiest day in Islam, 'Read more

Reviews (75)

An interesting quick read
How do you write a 226-page book covering someone whom we have very little historical knowledge about?Put a lot of space between the lines, and fill in the gaps with long, superfluous descriptions of what the weather was like the day you were doing your research, and you can stretch it out to 226 pages.Yes, the content of this book is quite thin, stretched out to needless length.But fortunately, it's an easy read, so it goes fast even though you do have to wade through some of those verbose setting-the-mood descriptions.
Interesting Read
As a Christian I am interested in the phenomenon of Abraham as the progenitor of three of the main religions on earth. Of particular interest was the portrayal of this character through the lenses of the two other belief systems that I am not so familiar with. In an easy to read format this is at once a book for the curious without the need for serious scholarship,and will therefore be appealing to a wide readership. Coupled with this is the current apetite throughout the world to understand better the problems of the middle-east and also the clarion-call for religious tolerance and reconciliation. All of this may be found in this book which will therefore guarantee its success as a money spinner.
A WONDERFUL BOOK... VERY INSPIRING... REMARKABLE... AMAZING
REMARKABLE... AMAZING... INSPIRING... INTRIGUING...
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Subjects:  1. (Biblical patriarch)    2. Abraham    3. Bible - Biography - Old Testament    4. Bible - Study - Old Testament    5. Comparative Religion    6. History    7. Religion    8. Religion - World Religions    9. Religion / History    10. Reading Group Guide   

Reviews (3)

False advertising?
When I first read about this "translation" of Mikra'ot Gedolot, I thought to myself: it can't be true.Chavel's English translation of RaMBaN's (Nachmanides) commentary on Shemot (Exodus) alone contains 626 pages of text. How in the world could all of that plus the other classical commentaries plus the original biblical text in Hebrew plus two translations of the biblical text all fit into a 349 page volume? The answer is that they don't.Just by checking the sample page available on the JPS website, I immediately saw that much of Ibn Ezra was missing.For all I know, this may be a very useful volume. However, if you think that it really offers translations of all the materials that appear in a real Mikra'ot Gedolot - think again.

Finding Your Way Through Exodus Was Never So Easy
This new translation of Miqra'ot Gedolot - Exodus is wonderful.The format is easy to read, the translations are very accessible, and the page of commentaries comes alive for those who are (yet) unable to read the original in Hebrew.This translation opens up a whole new world for the student of Torah and Bible - hearing the voices of the commentators respond to each other... and now the reader is invited to join the conversation.Looking forward to all five books of Torah.. and beyond.

Let It Go Medieval On You
Compiled by Michael Carasik, a teacher of Bible at the University of Pennsylvania, Miqra'ot Gedolot (or "large format bible") is now available in an understandable English edition.It was first published 500 years ago (the second edition was published in 1525 by Rabbi Yakov ben Hayyim) as the "Rabbinic Bible." The format is a Hebrew text from the bible in the middle of the page.On top of this Hebrew box is a Targum, or translation(s) in English; surrounding the passage are medieval commentaries from Rashi (RAbbi SHlomo ben Yitzhak, 1040-1105, Northern France), Rashbam (RAbbi SHmuel Ben Meir, 1085-1174, grandson of Rashi, Northern France) , Ibn Ezra (Rabbi Avraham ibn Ezra, 1089-c1164, Muslim Spain/Italy/France/England), and Nachmanides / RambaN (RAbbi Moshe BenNahman, 1195-c1260, Spain/Israel) in new, more understandable, English translations.Other commentators are included when appropriate, including "Masorah (or c1000 traditions)", Bekhor Shor (12th Century France), Rabbi David Kimhi (RaDaK, c1160-c1235, Provence),Hizkuni, Gersonides/Ralbag, Abarbanel (15th Century Inquisition/Spain/Portugal, Italy),and Sforno (Italy, 1470-1550).Abarbanel provides the main question.The biblical passage is translated using BOTH the 1917 (Old JPS) and 1985 (New JPS) JPS English translations, since great scholars wrote them in each period, and nuggets of insight can be derived from each one, even if they are not parallel. The beauty of reading medieval commentaries on Exodus is that they find connections and contradictions that lay readers in English may miss from the more modern bibles.Also, since the commentators lived at different times in different circumstances, the reader can see how the biblical passage spoke to various scholars over time.It also is more raw than the Hertz bibles' (U.K. Chief Rabbi J. H. Hertz), that were used in many synagogues, and written to gloss over "primitive" Hebrew practices.The editor recommends that you follow one particular commentator through an entire story; compare different commentators; compare the two differing English translations and try to understand why they differ;read an entire chapter in the Old JPS translatoin and then in the New JPS translation and see what insights you can find; and/or ponder whether the questions you ask on the text are the same questions that Abarbanel and others felt were the glaring issue.Go and Learn. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Bible    2. Bible - Commentaries - General    3. Bible - Commentaries - Old Testament    4. Bible.    5. Bibles - Hebrew    6. Commentaries    7. Judaism - Sacred Writings    8. O.T    9. O.T.    10. Pentateuch    11. Religion    12. Religion - Commentaries / Reference    13. Religion - Judaism    14. Biblical concordances & commentaries    15. Books of the Old Testament    16. Hebrew   

Reviews (27)

Great As A Teaching Manual!
This is a well written, thought provoking book. I am currently using it as a manual for a Bible study class. It's not one of those "deep theological" biographies, but it speaks to the layman, in a very easy-to-understand style. Recommended for study groups, or anyone, who wants to know more about the "man after God's own heart".

best of the Swindoll series?
All the books are good ... this one was great. It hit home for me.

For the most part Swindoll misses the point
We used this book for an adult Sunday School class that I taught.I was extremely disappointed by the superficial treatment of the text.I found myself using the Biblical text and other sources.For the most part Dr. Swindoll's book was a distraction rather than a help.For example, 2 Samuel 7 descibes
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Subjects:  1. Bible    2. Bible - Biography - Old Testament    3. Bible - Study - Old Testament    4. Bible.    5. Biography    6. Biography & Autobiography    7. Biography/Autobiography    8. David,    9. King of Israel    10. O.T    11. O.T.    12. Old Testament    13. Religion - Biblical Studies    14. Religious    15. David    16. Personal Christian testimony & popular inspirational works    17. Reference    18. Religion / Bible / Biography / Old Testament    19. Inspirational    20. Religion   

Subjects:  1. Bible - Stories - New Testament    2. Bible - Stories - Old Testament    3. Bible - Study - New Testament    4. Christmas    5. Holidays - Christmas    6. Jesus Christ    7. Nativity    8. Religion    9. Religion - Biblical Studies    10. Christian festivals   

Reviews (14)

Excellent way to understand this psalm
If you believe in God from a Christian or Jew perspective, you can be enlightened and delighted with this thorough explanation of the psalm and benefit from taking the posture the psalmist(s) had when writing it.I have listened to this psalm throughout my whole life and never had the opportunity to fully see all that may be found in its deep meaning. It is amazing all can be expanded from these simple phrases.
A book to reread frequently
One of the most wonderful things about Rabbi Kushner's writings is that he isn't afraid to tackle the hard questions.If we indeed have a Shepherd, why isn't He doing a better job?To this question, Kushner says, "the psalmist would teach us to see the world, without illusions that nothing bad will ever happen, but without the fear that we will be utterly destroy This is a lovely book full of hope and wisdom.
Deep and heartfelt insights
I wasn't expecting much from this book when I picked it up. Beloved though its subject might be, how much can you say about a 15-line bit of verse - the 23rd Psalm ? But Rabbi Harold Kushner uses his compassion and intellect to unpack each line. Though informed by scholarship, this is not a dry scholarly exercise. Kushner uses each line as jumping-off point for a sermon on human v. divine nature, arguing that the heart of faith is not just believing in God, or thinking that God will fix our problems, but in feeling the assurance that God is present and hears us. To Kushner, comfort comes not from an assurance that God will save us from evil, but that with God we are never alone.
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Subjects:  1. Bible    2. Bible - Study - Old Testament    3. Criticism    4. Criticism, interpretation, etc    5. Inspirational - General    6. Judaism    7. Judaism - General    8. O.T    9. O.T.    10. Psalms XXIII    11. Religion    12. Religion - Biblical Studies    13. Religion & Beliefs    14. Religion / Inspirational   

Editorial Review

"To deny a people the man whom it praises as the greatest of its sons is not a deed to be undertaken lightheartedly--especially by one belonging to that people," writes Sigmund Freud, as he prepares to pull the carpet out from under The Great Lawgiver in Read more

Reviews (16)

let my people go - all of them
Reading through the many wonderful reviews here, one gets the picture of what it is with this book: love it or hate it, believer or skeptic, even telling people the gist of the thesis and the story (the book is magnificently both), this work never fails to evoke a strong reaction.Look at the reviews.What is evident is that the book is truly provocative -rare for any book - no less a slight, speculative work of less than 200 pages, written somewhere in the middle of the twentieth century.Who would really care?But as you can see from this representative sample, people do.
Freud's Last Act
Freud's Last Act
Kemet-Moses & Akhenatens religion
Kemet-Moses: Read more

Subjects:  1. Bible - Study - Old Testament    2. Egyptian    3. General    4. Judaism    5. Monotheism    6. Psychology    7. Psychology of Religion    8. Psychology, Religious    9. Relations    10. Religion    11. Religion / Psychology of Religion    12. Religion: general   

Reviews (29)

Excellent and Long Overdue
As a Christian pastor, I really enjoy my Jewish Study Bible. I appreciate the multiple scholars who wrote the study notes. This is not a preachy Study Bible, it is an academic work. But the notes are immensely helpful. You will learn a lot about the Hebrew Bible.
I totally love this version I Give this Bible5 star
I m Big fan of the TANAKH Translation of the Hebrew Bible (aka Old Testament), but have been unable to find a volume that had study notes for the entire translation. The Jewish Publication Society (copyright holder of the TANAKH
Best Jewish Bible around for many reasons
Still the best translation of the Tanakh available, entertaining, poetic, and faithful to the original Hebrew while reflecting modern scholarship.The notes are useful and strike a good balance between being respectful to Jewish traditions and providing a critical, scholarly look at the text.As an added bonus there is an extensive collection of essays in the back, which may anger traditionalists or literalists, but I think reflect the best scholarship around.Essential for students of religion. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Bible    2. Bible - CriticismInterpretation - Old Testament    3. Bible.    4. Bibles    5. Bibles - Other    6. Commentaries    7. Judaism - General    8. O.T    9. O.T.    10. Religion    11. Bibles | Study Bibles | Tanakh (Jewish version)    12. Judaism    13. Old Testament    14. Religion / Bible / Criticism, Interpretation / Old Testament   

Reviews (6)

Easy reading for the lay person
I'm not a Bible scholar, so I'm basing my review on ease of use for the lay person.
Literally a revelation
I now realise that I had never really understood the Five Books of Moses before I read this superb translation. It is written in easy to understand, modern English but unlike say the "Good News" version it brings out the full meaning without oversimplification. Many Christians devalue the Old Testament and imagine that only the New Testament is worth studying.However, to those who think that the Laws of Moses are archaic and outmoded, or who imagine that "Love your neighbour as yourself" is solely a New Testament idea, I say read this and be amazed. The Old Testament God is as close to us and full of love for us as Jesus.

A Commendable Translation
Translating the Hebrew writings commonly and collectively known as the Old Testament is a complex task. Not only is the scholar faced with the absence of written vowels, leading to many uncertain words, but there are also thewide varieties of literary types (histories, poems, narratives, tales,songs, etc.) to not only translate but convey into an intelligible Englishthat preserves the meaning as well as the style of the original. Add tothis the intense religious importance of the work to the three majorreligions on the world and all the feeling that can accompany that and thetask is, to put it mildly, heroic. Moreover, some translations are madefrom the Masoretic text, others from the Septuagint, still others fromcombinations of the two. While the Septuagint is actually an older version,it is also in Greek. Thus the translator is faced with the choice betweenScylla and Charybdis when choosing a source document - the older Greek andthus twice removed, being a Greek translation of an older Hebrew or perhapseven Aramaic text, or the more recent (ninth century B.C.E.) Masoretic textthat is at least in Hebrew. Most often the result of all this textual andlinguistic juggling is the production of a mere shadow of the original. Inthe case of the JPS Torah, the result is better than average. Read more

Subjects:  1. Bibles - Hebrew    2. Judaism - Sacred Writings    3. Religion    4. Religion - Judaism    5. Biblical concordances & commentaries    6. Books of the Old Testament    7. Hebrew    8. Judaism    9. Sacred texts   

Reviews (1)

volume III.., at last!
Those who have purchased the previous two volumes may find this to be no less an endeavor of exegesis and scholarship.What this edition has done is quite simply (for all the effort) bring forth the gem within the text that for many has been hidden for so long a time.
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Subjects:  1. Bible - CriticismInterpretation - Old Testament    2. Bible.    3. Cabala    4. Commentaries    5. Early works to 1800    6. Judaism - Kabbalah & Mysticism    7. Judaism - Sacred Writings    8. O.T.    9. Pentateuch    10. Religion    11. Religion - Judaism    12. Zohar    13. Judaism    14. Sacred texts   

Reviews (8)

Warning:Not by chapter
This is a "lexicon" due to its references, but it's organized like a dictionary.If you're translating the Hebrew Bible, this is an awesome resource as a Biblical dictionary, but I thought I'd let y'all know that it's very different from the Armstrong Lexicon which organizes by chapter, in order.Thus, if you're working through a few chapters of Bible, in a class or on one's own, then the Armstrong will list the infrequently-used words (i.e. "the hard words!") in order by chapter, so you don't have to look up the words in a dictionary like this one.
More Support
I own several lexicons, but like most of the reviewers noted, Holladay is the one I always reached for until I found this really old pocket sized lexicon (the same size as Souter's Greek Lexicon.) I use the pocket lexicon now first, and Holladay's second. I don't even look at BDB anymore. Too bad someone hasn't come out with a new pocket-sized lexicon for fast lookups while flying somewhere!

Still the standard . . .
One of the best . . . this is THE highly recommended reference by the Elementary Hebrew profs at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Aramaic language    2. Bible    3. Bible - Language Studies    4. Bible - Study - Old Testament    5. Dictionaries    6. English    7. Hebrew language    8. Judaism - Sacred Writings    9. Religion    10. Religion - Biblical Studies - Foreign Language    11. Christianity   

Subjects:  1. Bible    2. Bible - Biography - Old Testament    3. Bible - CriticismInterpretation - Old Testament    4. Bible - Study - Old Testament    5. Bible.    6. Introductions    7. O.T    8. O.T.    9. Religion    10. Religion - Biblical Studies    11. Biblical studies, criticism & exegesis    12. Old Testament   

Reviews (12)

Esther the Ideal Woman
Recently I read this with a group over a period of 8 weeks. Not this one
The book has an attractive cover and is well-marketed.Beyond that, it's not worth the investment of time nor money.The well-meaning author writes in a folksy narrative, with flagrant grammar flaws and overuses exclamation marks.The organization and chronology are likewise poor.Worse yet, substantively, the book reaches far and states assumptions which are not Biblicallysound.Unfortunately, the author is not clear to point out those incidences when he may be speculating versus citing fact, which makes for some unsound theology.Read the Biblical book of Esther and see how vastly different it is from this book.This read is heavy on extras and tangents that are irrelevant to the theme.

Not this one
The book has an attractive cover and is well-marketed.Beyond that, it's not worth the investment of time nor money.The well-meaning author writes in a folksy narrative, with flagrant grammar flaws and overuses exclamation marks.The organization and chronology are likewise poor.Worse yet, substantively, the book reaches far and states assumptions which are not Biblicallysound.Unfortunately, the author is not clear to point out those incidences when he may be speculating versus citing fact, which makes for some unsound theology.Read the Biblical book of Esther and see how vastly different it is from this book.This read is heavy on extras and tangents that are irrelevant to the theme. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Bible    2. Bible - Biography - Old Testament    3. Bible - Study - Old Testament    4. Bible.    5. Biography    6. Biography & Autobiography    7. Esther    8. Esther,    9. O.T    10. O.T.    11. Old Testament - Single Book Studies    12. Queen of Persia    13. Religion    14. Religion - Biblical Studies    15. Religious    16. Books of the Old Testament    17. Personal Christian testimony & popular inspirational works    18. Reference    19. Religion / Bible / Biography / Old Testament   

Reviews (7)

"One of the two best on Joseph!"
Although my favorite Joseph book is 'With Joseph in the University of Adversity: the Mizraim Principles', by Dr. Parks, this one is a close second! If you want a pastor's heart in the telling of the story--this one is best! If you want sound principles for everyday life that you or a graduate can use, and really well-organized--go with Parks (if you can get your hands on a copy!). Swindoll does this as part of a series, and it's excellent! These are the best two Joseph books around.

Awesome Knowledge!
Once again, Charles Swindoll has brought a biblical character to life.I felt as if I was going "through" with Joseph!Mr. Swindoll makes it easy to relate what happen to Joseph with his family relations to today's family.If you're having difficulty relating to the trials and tribulations your family faces, read this book and get a revelation from God!

Entertaining and Enlightening
This is only the second book by Swindoll that I have read. The first was "Intimacy with the Almighty". I liked this one much better. Swindoll did a fantastic job with the life of Joseph. He included a lot of details and perspective on issues, Jacob's poor parenting, geographic locations, etc. that really put you in Joseph's shoes. The book was an engaging page-turner, which I devoured and greatly enjoyed. I am looking forward to reading some of the other books in the series. (Moses, Daniel, etc.) ... Read more

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