Friday, August 29, 2008

Worthless Things

Psalm 119:37 says:
Turn my eyes from looking at worthless things;and give me life in your ways.


Today, more than ever, I make this prayer. Some worthless things that I find myself looking at include:
Worries, other's deeds and misdeeds,the future.

The one thing I would like to remain focused on and keep looking at is the hope that I have in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. After all, I can not change one thing by worrying.

As the LORD turns my eyes from the worthless things he will give me life in his ways.

Amen!

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New Books Came Today!

I was so happy to see the UPS man at the front door that I had to be careful not to give him the wrong idea lol!

Truly, it was not him I was happy to see but my (hopefully) final shipment of books from
Christian Book Distributors


I order nearly all of my new homeschooling books from them because it is very convenient to do so. They now have my shipping information set up in my account so I can log on and start adding to my cart pretty quickly.

I have been fortunate in that everything that I have needed has been in stock and it usually comes 1 day before they say it will and for that I am grateful.

I think I have everybody at the best grade level so we will go with where we are for now.

Our HomeSat Satellite has been re-pointed to where it needs to go and I am one happy homeschooling mama now. I was quite the bear yesterday and had to ask forgiveness today for my previously grumpy attitude.

All's well that ends well.

Thursday, August 28, 2008

Study Bibles: Holman Illustrated Study Bible






402757: The Holman Illustrated Study Bible, HardcoverThe Holman Illustrated Study Bible, Hardcover

By Holman Bible Publishers


To really grasp God’s word, understanding the Bible’s historical, geographical, and cultural contexts is vital. After all, Scripture is not just a set of abstract ideas; God chose to reveal Himself through real people who lived at specific places and times.

The Holman Illustrated Bible takes you there. Using over 1,000 color graphics, maps, photographs, reconstructions, and charts to enliven the Bible world, this special Bible edition enlightens readers to the contextual details of every major character and moment. In addition, helpful introductions list the author, date, original audience, and purpose of each book; give a key text and term; show Christ in each book; and place each book in the overall story of Scripture.

  • HCSB (Holman Christian Standard Bible) translation 
  • Presentation page
  • Family record section
  • Single-column format 
  • Paragraph-style layout
  • 9 Point text
  • Detailed book introductions
  • Over 700 full-color photos
  • Approximately 200 charts, maps, illustrations and reconstructions
  • Colorful graphics and sidebars
  • Words of Christ in red
  • HCSB Bullet Notes 
  • Appendix: 
    • Millennial Perspectives on Revelation
    • Prophecies of Jesus's Second Coming
    • Map: Expansion of Christianity in the 2nd & 3rd Centuries AD
    • Ancient Versions of Biblical Text
    • Hebrew Canon of the Old Testament 
    • Comparison Lists of Old Testament Books
    • The Apocrypha (chart outlining the Deuterocanonical books) 
    • Stages in the Development of the New Testament Canon
    • Table of Weights & Measures
    • One-Year Reading Plan 
    • Concordance
    • Index to articles
  • Ribbon Marker
  • 61/2" x 91/2" x 13/4"
  • Hardcover

Study Bibles: NIV Leather Study Bible






611849: NIV 30th Anniversary Study Bible-Custom Edition Genuine Leather BlackNIV 30th Anniversary Study Bible-Custom Edition Genuine Leather Black

By Zondervan


Celebrate the dual 30th anniversaries of the NIV—the most successful Bible translation of all time, and CBD—the largest religious-product online company in the world with this exclusive updated anniversary edition!

The Zondervan NIV Study Bible is the #1 bestselling study Bible in the bestselling NIV translation. And now it includes for 2008 a 25% revision to the over 20,000 in-text study notes and a library of study resources at your fingertips. This edition also includes a 130-page topical index for more in-depth study. Excellent for home school use.

For 2008, the NIV Study Bible’s 20,000-plus study notes and other features have been updated and improved. Unmatched in any other study Bible, these notes have been crafted to reflect the most current conservative Bible scholarship. Other study features place at your fingertips a treasury of instant commentary from today's top evangelical scholars. Icons highlight notes of special interest in the areas of character study, archaeology, and personal application. Simply put, you won't find study notes as complete, up to date, helpful, and easy to use anywhere else.

Features include:
  • Over 20,000 in-text notes
  • 75 in-text maps and charts
  • Comprehensive book introductions
  • Words of Christ in red
  • Icons that highlight notes concerning:
    • Archaeological information
    • Personal application
    • Characters and people groups
  • NIV comprehensive concordance
  • NIV topical index
  • Notes index
  • 8.9-point font size
  • Black genuine leather with CBD logo

Study Bibles: Life Application Study Bible






84936: NLT Life Application Study Bible - Updated Edition HardcoverNLT Life Application Study Bible - Updated Edition Hardcover

By Tyndale House


One of today's best-selling study Bibles--the Life ApplicationStudy Bible--has been updated and expanded. Over 300 new LifeApplication notes, nearly 350 note revisions, 16 new personalityprofiles, updated charts, and a Christian Worker's Resource make thisbest-seller even better.

New Features:
  • Over 300 new Life Application notes and significant revisions to nearly 350 others
  • 16 new Personality Profiles
  • Most charts revised to clarify meaning and importance, plus eight all-new charts
  • New information on the intertestamental period
  • Christian Worker's Resource, a special supplement to enhance the reader's ministry effectiveness, includes:
    • How to Become a Believer,
    • How to Follow Up with a New Believer,
    • Mining the Treasures of the Life Application Study Bible,
    • So You've Been Asked to Speak,
    • Taking the Step to Application
All this is in addition to the excellent collection of features that have made the Life Application Study Bible a best-seller.

 

  • Thousands of Life Application notes help explain God's Word and challenge readers to apply the truth of Scripture to life
  • Personality profiles highlight over 100 important Bible characters
  • Book introductions provide vital statistics, overview, and timeline to help readers understand the message of each book
  • 200 thumbnail maps highlight important Bible places and events
  • 260 charts help explain difficult concepts and relationships
  • Cross-references
  • Harmony of the Gospels built right into the text of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John
  • Dictionary/concordance
  • Words of Christ in red letter
  • Daily reading plan
  • Additional features:
    • Presentation Page
    • Family records section
    • Single Column Format
    • Side-column cross references
    • Index to Notes
    • Index to Charts
    • Index to Maps
    • Index to Personality Profiles
    • Dictionary/Concordance
    • Scripture Text: 8 Point
    • Notes: 8 Point
    • 16 pages of color maps & diagrams
    • 6 3/4" x 9 1/2" x 2"
    • Hardcover

Bibles of the Reformation- The ESV Study Bible

I really enjoy studying my Bibles and I am grateful that God has given such a desire to learn his word. I will be posting some reviews and descriptions of some of my favorites that I use regularly (and some on my wishlist that I have borrowed from the library).

The ESV Reformation Study Bible is one of my favorites. I especially enjoy the notes on church history and doctrine and book outlines. I also like the readability and lovely English of the ESV.

Read the full description of the book below:

26434: ESV Reformation Study Bible, HardcoverESV Reformation Study Bible, Hardcover

By Ligonier Ministries


Widely considered one of the best tools available for Bible study and previously only available in the New King James Version, the Reformation Study Bible (RSB) has been updated to the readable and accurate English Standard Version (ESV).

Respected theologian Dr. R.C. Sproul, founder and chairman of Ligonier Ministries, served as this study Bible's general editor. "The Reformation Study Bible contains a modern restatement of Reformation truth in its comments and theological notes. Its purpose is to present the light of the Reformation afresh," stated Dr. Sproul.

The thousands of in-depth study notes included in the RSB were compiled from over 50 distinguished biblical scholars, including Drs. J.I. Packer, James Boice, and Wayne Grudem. In addition to the comprehensive study notes, the RSB offers readers extended discussions on the authority of Scripture, the atonement, and other key aspects of biblical theology.

The RSB is intended for use by anyone who wants a deeper understanding of the Scriptures. The reader will appreciate book introductions, an extensive cross-reference system, and illuminated words and terms within the Bible that are crucial to an in-depth understanding. This new edition in the ESV is published by Ligonier Ministries and produced and distributed by P&R Publishing of Phillipsburg, NJ.

Features:
  • Theological Notes index
  • In-text maps index
  • Charts index
  • Section introductions (Pentateuch, History, etc)
  • Book Introductions
  • Passage headings
  • Double-column format
  • Center-column references
  • Black letter edtion
  • Concordance
  • Gold page edges
  • Ribbon Marker
  • Hardcover

Bibles of the Reformation- The NIV Reformation Bible






23636: NIV Spirit of the Reformation Study Bible, Top-Grain Leather, BlackNIV Spirit of the Reformation Study Bible, Top-Grain Leather, Black

By Bible / Zondervan


A fresh and conservative approach to studying the Scriptures through the eyes of the Reformed tradition.

The NIV Spirit of the Reformation Study Bible provides a theologically conservative, balanced system of notes and articles that trace the Reformed Christian heritage back to its roots in the Reformation. Appropriate for both an academic and an informed lay audience, this Bible incorporates extensive study notes, as well as articles, charts, and graphs, that comment on Scripture from a distinctly Reformed perspective. Included is the complete text of Reformed doctrinal standards, keyed to relevant Scripture passages.

Special features:

In-text theological articles on topics relevant to Reformed believers; Extensive theological and study notes; Side-column cross references; Section and book introductions & outlines; In-text maps, charts, & graphs; Concordance; 14 color Maps; and the complete text of the following: Heidelberg Catechism, Westminster Confession, Westminster Larger Confession, Westminster Shorter Catechism, Belgic Confession, and Canons of Dort. Top Grain Leather, Black.

Bibles of the Reformation- The Geneva Bible






562125: The Geneva Bible: 1560 Edition, hardcover The Bible of the Protestant ReformationThe Geneva Bible: 1560 Edition, hardcover The Bible of the Protestant Reformation

By Hendrickson Publishers


The Geneva Bible was a monumental achievement in the history of Protestant Bible translation. Born in a time of religious and political upheaval it helped foster scripture literacy among the common people of England.

The first English Bible to be fully translated from the original languages, the Geneva Bible was the product of some of the finest biblical scholars of its day. It was the first to feature many innovations in the field of Bible publishing:

  • Text printed in readable roman type
  • Division of the text into numbered verses
  • Italic type used for words not in the original languages
  • Marks placed over the accented syllables to aid in pronouncing proper names
  • Extensive textual and explanatory commentary placed in the margins
  • Words/phrases displayed at the heads of pages to promote scripture memorization
  • Maps and woodcuts illustrating biblical scenes included
  • Sold in a variety of sizes so many people could afford a household Bible

English settlers that voyaged to the New World favored the Geneva Bible. It is probable that the Geneva Bible came to America in 1607 and was used in the Jamestown colony. Thirteen years later the Pilgrims brought it with them on the Mayflower's perilous voyage to religious freedom.

Features:

  • Facsimile of the University of Wisconsin Press edition of the 1560 Geneva Bible
  • Features clear, legible type throughout (marginal commentary is in smaller type)
  • Complete, original marginal commentary, maps and woodcut illustrations
  • Authoritative introduction to the Geneva Bible by Lloyd E. Berry

The Bible Experience






926306: Inspired by...The Bible Experience Complete Audio Bible on CDInspired by...The Bible Experience Complete Audio Bible on CD

By Zondervan


Inspired by...The Bible Experience is an inspiring audio Bible that features an unprecedented cast of nearly 400 of today's distinguished Hollywood actors, actresses, and musicians. It features movie-quality sound effects and background musicand is a fully dramatized version of the TNIV Bible, developed by entertainment veterans. The phenomenal quality draws you into Scripture and makes the Bible come alive in a new way not experienced before. The New Testament was the 2007 Audies Awards Audiobook of the Year Award Winner, and the Old Testament is currently nominated for the 2008 Audies in four categories: Achievement in Production, Inspirational/Spiritual, Multi-voices Performance, and Package Design!

Check out the first of five new behind-the-scenes videos!

Back to Homeschool!

My children are very excited about getting back in the full swing of homeschooling.

Chase can not wait to start 3rd grade and Alyssa is happy that she will learn to read (just like big brother!) in kindergarten.

We are off to a slow start because of family illness as well as some technical glitches but I am trying out my commitment to be more patient this year already.

We will be using BJU Press 3rd grade and K5 as our primary curriculum for all subjects with many add-ons.

I like the breadth and depth of the BJU Press curriculum. I know that some homeschool moms find it overwhelming but it works well if you view the curriculum as a huge buffet. There are so many learning activities suggested that I do not feel we need to do every single one to get a very good education.

How is your homeschool year starting out?

Chesed: Lovingkindness

Last night I felt the urge to look up the Hebrew word "chesed". I knew it was frequently translated as "lovingkindness" but I felt that I wanted to know more.

“Mercy,” “steadfast love,” “compassion,” and “goodness” are other words chesed is translated into. There is no exact English equivalent for the word.

Chesed is considered an attribute of God and is usually found in the Bible in relation to covenants between God and man.

How amazing to think that God regards mere humans in this way ever! Not only to be recipients of his good love and unchanging love but merciful love as we are surely undeserving.

Thinking like this makes me think how wonderful it is to be able to worship our loving Creator.

Psalm 40:11
Withhold not thou thy tender mercies from me, O LORD: let thy lovingkindness and thy truth continually preserve me.


Check out Hebrew4christians.com for more on chesed and meditating on the Lord's lovingkindness.

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Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Study Bibles: John MacArthur's NKJV Study Bible


NKJV Study Bibles

I have been truly blessed by the teachings of John MacArthur. I am always able to find reliable answers to many of my answers about Christianity and the Bible and sound exegesis on even tough Bible passages. Next on my list- MacArthur's NASB Study Bible! See the full description of the John MacArthur Study Bible below:

018991: NKJV MacArthur Study Bible, Revised Edition, Hardcover NKJV MacArthur Study Bible, Revised Edition, Hardcover

By Thomas Nelson


Unleashing God's Truth, One Verse at a Time!

Featuring the word-for-word accuracy of the New King James Version, The MacArthur Study Bible is perfect for serious study. Dr. John MacArthur has compiled more than 20,000 study notes, and numerous charts, maps, outlines, and articles to create The MacArthur Study Bible. No other study Bible does such a thorough job of explaining the historical context, unfolding the meaning of the text, and placing it within a theological framework. It has now been updated with an abridged topical index and an exhaustive NKJV concordance.

Teeming with beneficial Bible helps, The MacArthur Study Bible is among the elite of Bible study tools. Over 35 years of Bible study are packed into one volume. The extensive verse-by-verse study notes provide a one-stop way to do your Bible study. Just a few of its numerous features are:

  • Over 600 pages of revisions and updates
  • New 125 page NKJV concordance including people and places
  • New concise Topical Index
  • More than 20,000 study notes
  • Introductions to the Bible
  • Thorough Book Introductions and Outlines
  • Outline of Systematic Theology
  • Concordance
  • Index to Key Bible Doctrines
  • Messianic Prophecies in the Old Testament
  • Timeline of Old Testament Kings and Prophets
  • Timeline of New Testament Chronology
  • How We Got the Bible
  • How to Study the Bible
  • Harmony of the Gospels
  • Over 50 Bible Maps
  • Full-Color Maps

Other Features:

  • Presentation page
  • Family record section
  • 8.5 point text
  • Double-column format
  • Center-column references
  • Bible reading plans
  • Index to Key Bible Doctrines
  • Table of Weights & Measures
  • 7" 91/2" 13/4"
  • Hardcover



To see even more NKJV Study Bibles at CBD.com click below:

NKJV Study Bibles

Run in the Ways of the Lord

I will run in the way of your commandments when you enlarge my heart. Psalm 119:32

Heavenly father, I pray you would enlarge my heart and set my heart free so that I may run swiftly in the way your commandments. Lord, how glorious and exhilarating to not only know the path and the way through your word but to be granted the strength to run in it with joy!

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Thursday, August 14, 2008

Too Many Blogs, Too Little Time

Well, I do like blogging but I seem to have acquired so many blogs!

I will either maintain this blog or my homeschoolblogger as my personal, homeschooling blog and I will keep my Mom's Bible Study Blog and Mom's Bible Website because I am on fire for those.

Check them out when you have a chance.

Hopefully, one day, I will also post some of the recipes and cute cooking videos I have also.

Psalm 119: Ask For Understanding

Your hands have made and fashioned me; give me understanding that I may learn your commandments. Psalm 119:73


I have to always remember to ask for understanding. How much more meaningful my study of the Scriptures is if I ask the Lord to shine his majestic light on all that I read and give me full understanding as he sees fit to suit his divine purposes.

I try to take a few minutes before I begin to read to pray:
Heavenly Father, Speak to me through your word today. Grant me understanding that I might follow all of your commands. Show me the truth in your word and help me to apply it to my life today. Amen


I know that of my own accord, I am very prone to error. I have fairly recently been led astray by not paying careful attention to God's word and not seeking his understanding.

The psalmist knew of our tendency to err and he knows we must ask our creator, the One who knows us better than anyone, to help us to understand as he wants us to understand.

How fortunate we are to serve a loving and caring God whose mercies are new every day.

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Psalm 119: Always Fresh

I am not one who usually cares to re-read a book after I have gone through it once. I get so bored reading what I already read.

How different God's word is for me!

For example, I have been reading and re-reading Psalm 119, the longest Psalm and the longest chapter in the Bible, since I answered God's call to become born again.

Each time I read it, I find more and more wonderful truths in it. Even if I only read a part of this 176-line long chapter, God chooses to reveal something else of himself to me. Today, several of the verses spoke directly to me and I wrote down some of my observations.

Sometimes the revelation is encouraging, sometimes it is convicting but I am always filled with hope after an encounter with Psalm 119.

I will be sharing more about Psalm 119 in future posts.

My verse for today is:
Your hands have made me and fashioned me; give me understanding that I may learn your commandments. Psalm 119:73 (ESV)

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Friday, August 8, 2008

Hold On To Hope- Part 3

Have you ever felt discouraged in your role as a mom, wife or child of God? Do you ever look for guidance and instruction in how to best accomplish all the tasks you feel are important? Romans 15:4 tells us that the Scriptures have two very important purposes in our lives.
1. Instruction. We are to learn godliness and holiness through our careful review and dedication to study the holy Scripture.
2.Encouragement. We are to look to the Scriptures to see God's promises, gods faithfulness and God's power to be given hope to persevere.

We have hope! You and I, and all moms in Christ, we have hope. We will experience failures, setbacks and disgrace but we have hope. Our wonderful God, Lord and Savior has not left us stumbling in the dark. He has given us his word. Through his word, he teaches and encourages us.

How very grateful I am to serve such a loving, merciful God!

I am definitely not where I would like to be in my quest to imitate Jesus Christ. Should I just give up and get discouraged?

No! I need to keep learning and looking to God's word to keep me going to the end of my race.

Not only does God give me the instruction that I need but he also provides everything else that I need to run the race with endurance and never give up on pursuing what is right through the grace and sacrifice of Christ.

Paul includes in Chapter 15 at verse 13 a prayer that I would like to leave with all of my readers and listeners today:
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.

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Thursday, August 7, 2008

Hold On To Hope- Part 2

We learned in our last lesson that we are to be as Christ and one to follow his example is to be willing to please my neighbor and therefore to be willing to bear reproach.

What does this have to do with hope?

Psalm 69, which Paul has in view, is ultimately a psalm of hope. Although David has suffered and is suffering, his hope and praise are in the Lord.

In the midst of his disgrace, David's poignant response in Psalm 69 is:
But I am afflicted and in pain, let your salvation O God set me on high!
I will praise the name of God with a song; I will magnify him with thanksgiving.(v. 29,30)
And again,
For the Lord hears the needy and does not despise his own people who are prisoners.
Let heaven and earth praise him, the seas and everything that moves in them. (v. 33,34)

The apostle Paul directs his Roman readers to this Psalm anticipating the difficulties and trials that will be faced by following Christ.
The hope that we have in the salvation of our wonderful Creator and Savior is the only reason for us to persevere in the ways of righteousness to which Paul is directing us.

And how are we reminded to have hope? How are we to be encouraged as we embark on the reproach-filled road of the Cross of Jesus?

God's word, the Scriptures, are our source of hope and encouragement.

Romans 15:4 tells us:
For whatever was written in the former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of Scriptures we might have hope.


How amazing that Paul writes that the Old Testament Scriptures were written for us in the New Testament church. A careful reading of the New Testament will surely direct us continuously back to the Old Testament for the foundation of the truths found in the New Testament. How reassuring that Paul did not feel the need to "reinvent the wheel"in his teachings to Jesus' followers!
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Tuesday, August 5, 2008

Hold On To Hope

This post is inspired by a John Piper sermon series I recently listened to called "The Fruit of Hope."

Romans 15:4, 5 says:
For whatever was written in the former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.


Brief Background on the Book of Romans:

Paul wrote the letter to this letter to the Romans to edify and encourage the Christian church in Rome, the capital of the ruling empire of the time. One of the major themes of Paul's writing is unity under the Gospel message. Weak and strong, Jew and Gentile, Paul reminds his readers to strive to be of one accord that God may be glorified.

Romans Chapter 15 is concerned with the Roman church living as Christ in relation to one another. The chapter reinforces a similar theme in chapter 14. We are first told how Christ would act and therefore what we should then do.
We who are strong have an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves. Let each of us please his neighbors for his good, to build him up.(verses 1,2)

Those are pretty tough commands- at least for me they are. How can I not lose hope in trying to follow this impossible command to put others before myself and not only bear with the failings of the weak but to actually build them up?

All my flesh wants to do is berate the weak and in my pride to brag and boast about my strengths as compared to others. I please myself by being able to boast in my own strengths and by having everything the way I want it. I see this message as being written directly to me especially in relation to my dealings with my husband and children.

Why not focus on pleasing myself? Verse 3 tells us:
For Christ did not please himself...

I am to model myself after Christ.

If I model myself after Christ, what will I get as my earthly reward? What was Christ's reward for not pleasing himself? Reproach. The verse continues:
...but as it is written, 'the reproaches of those who reproached you fell on me.'

What is reproach? It is a term that means disgrace or dishonor. This verse quotes Psalm 69:9:
For zeal for your house has consumed me and the reproaches of those who reproach you have fallen on me.

David in Psalm 69 cries out to God about the suffering he has experienced because of following the one true and living God, the God of Israel. He says in verse 7 of Psalm 69:

For it is for your sake that I have borne reproach, that dishonor has covered my face.

David goes on to say that fasting and repentance, following God's commands, bring on further ridicule from all, from the noblest to the lowest of men.

This puts me in mind of Hannah who was even ridiculed by a priest, Eli, for her fervent prayers to the Lord. Praying with all her heart to the Lord, Hannah was thought to be drunk. Can you imagine even bearing the reproach of your priest for following your heart to cry out to the Lord?

How can you hold on to hope in the face of reproach?

Stay tuned for Part 2 of "Hold on to Hope".


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Saturday, August 2, 2008

How We Got the Bible: Book Review

It has been a while since any book besides the Holy Bible had me so captivated that I could not put it down. I took this book around with me everywhere (even swim team practice!) until I finished it.

The book is "How We Got The Bible: A Visual Journey" by Clinton E. Arnold. What a rich treat!

Until I read this book, I knew very little of the history of the Bible. I was very aware that the precious book, the Bible, had faced destruction throughout most of it's history. I knew that rulers had long tried to keep the Bible out of the hands of common people.

I did not understand how the Bible actually came into being from ancient manuscripts.

"How We Got The Bible" gave me a brief but very interesting and informative view of the history of the English-language Bible.

The large number of photos, interesting sidebars and clear prose made this book quite one of my recent favorites!

With photos of actual manuscripts, paintings of notable figures in the Bible's history and interesting charts and lists, this very easy-to-read guide whetted my appetite to read more on this subject.

I recommend this book for anyone who would like to know more about the origins of the Bible.

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