
Hi, my name’s Wes, and I’ve studied the Bible and its background for over 40 years. I’m an enthusiastic amateur, who hopes you’ll become enthusiastic, too. Nothing here will try changing your doctrines, but expect to find a greater love for God’s Word.
God originally offered His scriptures, book by book, to people very different from ourselves. He offered it in their language, but also gave it using their ways of thinking, using illustrations and metaphors from their world. Sometimes the differences are easy to spot and figure out, but sometimes, not so much.
That’s when the fun begins.
Don’t get me wrong; we both know that God has made His word very readable to all of us. He’s given us the words that bring eternal life, and they’re plainly there, for all to see. He’s given us lessons that can help us lead better, happier, and more fulfilled lives, and to help others, as we travel together through life. But there’s more…
The ancient, unfamiliar, and almost alien world of the Bible is filled with surprises for those who read with modern, western eyes. Generations of archaeologists, historians, and scholars of all types have written libraries filled with books that tell so much. Only they’re written by brilliant people, for other brilliant people, using their language, their ways of thinking, and using illustrations and metaphors from their world. Seems we’re right back where we started.
Not so fast. What we need is a Bible nerd: someone who’s really “into” reading all that stuff. We need an enthusiastic amateur, who’ll go through all that material, and retell the best parts in everyday language. We need someone who’ll read all the dry, dusty stuff, so everyone else doesn’t have to. I’m here to give it my best.
I’ve no doubt that your Bible reading has gone just fine, all along. Yet if I do my job right, We’ll add an element of surprise and delight. You’ll start seeing new things that you’ve read right past, in previous study. Things will seem very different.
Let’s study this amazing world, together.
I also ask you to occasionally spot check some of the things you see on this site. I double-check everything I do, but I’m a fallible human, while you are a valued second set of eyes. None of the info here is classified; it’s all out there and widely available. Even though it tends to be rarely mentioned in our sermons or Sunday schools, it’s easy to find if you know to look for it. It seems that there are many interesting things to learn about but some just get overlooked. You probably find your own private study of the Bible to be wonderfully enriching. I’ve found that the more I learn about the amazing people and places inside the Bible, the more vivid my reading becomes.
This site is my gift to you, with hopes that it’ll help you in the same way. Please, use the “Tell Us What’s On Your Mind” form if you have suggestions, ideas for a post, or criticisms. (And please be kind. That’ll be your gift to me…)
We’ll be avoiding particular doctrines, other than the certainty that the Bible is God’s Word, and that our salvation is through the blood of Christ. Beyond these, I’ll make every effort to point out where there are controversies in those very rare cases where a doctrinal matter might manage to come up. I’ll do my best to give everyone’s interpretations a fair shake. I have no interest in telling you how to read your Bible, other than urging you very strongly to read it…
While I’ve done a reasonable bit of reading over the decades and think I may have something to share, there’s another way you can help make this site even better. You can also use the “Tell Us What’s On Your Mind” form to notify me if you find an error in this site. I’d really appreciate it if you could use it to help me correct any error you may find. In the end, I’ll have to make the decision as to what does and does not constitute an error, but I suspect that most visitors will find me very accommodating.
That’s important, because unless this site becomes as good as we can make it, it won’t be able to fulfill its “secret plan.” That plan is freely revealed here only to those interested enough to read to the very bottom of this page. The real purpose of this site is to make reading the Bible more interesting to every visitor here. If they find it more interesting, they’ll do more of it. And if they read more of God’s Word, well, that’s just gotta change some lives. Shhhhh…
I think it’s a good plan, and that it can go far. With your ideas and your prayers, it can go much, much farther. Please feel welcome to visit often & don’t forget to tell your friends.
In His Love…
Wes Brzozowski