Decided to go for the Catholic Bible-RSV as it looks easier to read
The DR is a nice bible but maybe too heavy going for me. I am not a scholar but just want to be able to read / study the bible easily.
The RSV-CE is a good choice and the St. Ignatius Study BIble of the NT is so helpful.
In order to get the picture of salvation history start with the books that tell the story. Jeff Cavin’s Great Adventure Bible Study is excellent and will help you get the whole picture. If a Catholic Church near you offers the course, take it! You will learn so much. Then you can plug in the other books that are meant to be read and seen in a particular time period. Here are the 14 narrative books to read first in order to get the whole picture.
Genesis, Exodus, Numbers, Joshua, Judges, 1&2Samuel, 1&2Kings, Ezra, Nehemiah, Maccabees, Luke, and Acts.
Jeff Cavins divides the Bible into 12 periods: The Early World, The Patriarchs, Egypt and Exodus, Desert Wanderings, Conquest and Judges, Royal Kingdom, Divided Kingdom, Exile, Return, Maccabean Revolt, Messianic Fulfillment, The Church.
He shows how God’s covenant expanded from One Holy Couple with Adam and Eve, One Holy Family with Noah, One Holy Tribe with Jacob and his sons, One Holy Nation with Moses, One Holy Kingdom with David, One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church with Jesus.
He follows the bloodline of Jesus and looks at the fulfillment of the 3 promises to Abraham:
Land, Kingdom(name or dynasty), and World wide blessing.
He explains which books fit into which period and who the prophets were speaking too. He explains the world powers at the time and how they affected history. By the time you are done you will get so much more out of reading the bible and going to mass and listening to the readings. You will love it! God Bless!
PS Go to the website for the St. Paul Center for Biblical Study…
www.salvationhistory.com and you can follow free studies with commentaries as you read these books!