0000 Introduction

Introduction book is an introduction to the study of the Bible, and its primary concern is to prepare the student for his own study of the Bible rather than to present him with an encyclopedic survey of the factual data that have accumulated in the critical investigation of the Christian Scriptures. It is designed to orient the reader in the field of biblical study to give him a sense of direction, some indication of possible itineraries, a road map with good roads plainly labeled and dangers clearly marked.

It is not planned to minister to the devotional use of the Bible. The author believes that the Bible has valuable contributions to make to modern life, but to define those values here might easily lead to the dogmatic presentation of the author’s personal opinion or to a long survey of the many positions taken by others. Neither of these programs falls naturally into the purpose of this book. It gladly recognizes the existence of these values, the need for their study, and the validity of the use of the Bible in modern religious life. But the road it follows leads the student away from these areas toward an intelligent comprehension of what his own Bible is and an introduction to its study. To this end it presents the problems faced and the resources used in the study of the Bible’s origin, transmission, translation, and interpretation. In each of these areas an attempt is made to define the task that faces the student, to describe the helps and hindrances, to explain methods, and to suggest the amount of progress already made. There is no attempt to discuss in comprehensive fashion all the literary or historical problems involved in the study of each of the sixty-six books of the Bible. No attempt is made to survey in detail the history of the canon, or the materials and methods of textual criticism, or to present in summary all that is known in any area of biblical study. The student who is anxious to go on from this book to such study will find a bibliography at the end of each chapter, which is designed to lead him as far in the pursuit of the subject as his own interest will carry him. The bibliographies group the books referred to under two headings “General” and “Advanced” and most of the books listed are briefly characterized. A strenuous effort has been made to include in each of these divisions the clearest and soundest work of contemporary scholarship, preference being given to works which themselves contain good bibliographies and are of recent vintage. A final Bibliography lists periodicals, dictionaries, encyclopedias, series of commentaries, etc. An especial emphasis is laid upon the part played by the religious experience of the group in the creation of the literature and also upon the part played by the needs of the community in molding the literature into its present form. This is one of the vital interests of biblical scholarship today; and, as it has only recently won prominence, many of the older handbooks give it but scant attention. This book has been planned to serve as an orientation in the study of the Bible both for those who plan to specialize in the pursuit of biblical lore and also for those whose interest in the subject is of a more general character. The work of many a sincere student is fruitless because his attitudes are basically wrong or his methods unsound. This is often true of the “nonprofessional” student, the undergraduate in college, or the intelligent layman. The questions that come from these sources to the specialist’s desk betray a dismaying vulnerability to the attacks of quackery and fanaticism. While no one book can equip the beginner with attitudes and methods adequate for all his needs, this one it is hoped will help him toward that attainment. In so far as it accomplishes this it will provide the student with some solid ground on which to stand while he works; it will set up compass marks to prevent his being lost in the confusion of innumerable details and conflicting methods and theories.