You’d be hard-pressed to find a more intimidating book for the average person than the Bible.
I have two sitting next to me right now. The first is an English Standard Version (ESV), single column edition containing 1,488 pages, in something like 7 or 8-point font. The second is a New International (NIV), double column edition containing 1,302 pages, in something like 8 or 9-point font.
The regular habit of reading the Bible doesn’t sound strange to us, because it’s a part of who we are. But if we zoom out a little, and take stock of the fact that we regularly read a book made up of a coherent collection of writings, of which the newest is nearly 2,000-years old, we can start to see how this would seem strange to a lot of people.
If you’re looking for something good to watch, I would like to suggest a solid documentary on the Bible on Amazon Prime: “The God Who Speaks”.
What in the world could the Ethiopian eunuch and Philip have to do with English Bibles?
I hear you, I hear you. Let me explain.
In Acts 8 Philip is told by an angel of the Lord to go south to the road that goes from Jerusalem to Gaza (v. 26). On his way to the road he met an Ethiopian eunuch who was in his chariot. The Holy Spirit told Philip to go to the chariot and stand near it (v. 29). As Philip ran to the chariot, he heard the eunuch reading from Isaiah (v. 28), so Philip asked him if he understood what he was reading (v. 30). The eunuch said he couldn’t unless someone explained it to him (v. 31). So, Philip took the passage the eunuch was reading (Isaiah 53:7-8) and explained to him the good news about Jesus (vv. 32-25).