The Bible is so repetative....?

Question

I have read about the first 200 pages or so of the Bible. I can't read anymore. It's so boring. It's basically like a list. God did this. God did this. God did this. God did this. God did this. Theres hardly any story at all. It's just a gigantic list of things God did. Writing techniques and descriptive language has obviously come a long way since the Bible was written.

Answer 1

If the Bible is the word of God, he must be a total bore. I agree...

Answer 2

This is a fallacy, that the Bible can be read like it is nothing but literature.
It is a spiritual book, and unless one sees it as such, they cannot get from it what it says.
Sure, it'll seem boring. Especially all the who begat who begat who...etc.
But, as any mature and studied Christian can tell you, there are reasons for everything that is there. The purposes are not always readily apparent, but eventually, they are discovered.
Keep reading. I would begin in a different place, perhaps John, or Luke. Acts contains the history of the beginning of the church, and what the Apostles did, then perhaps go back to Genesis, then maybe Proverbs. Have fun reading- there's a lifetime of learning in those pages.

Answer 3

You should start with the New Testament. This is what really matters because it is through Jesus that we become saved. I agree that the Old Testament is difficult to read. I started reading the New Testament, and it is much easier. You will learn all about Jesus, and this is what should matter to you anyway. Not to mention, the New Testament is really all we need as Christians because many of the teachings of the Old Testament were replaced by new teachings from Jesus in the New Testament. However, once you read the New Testament, I would go back and read the Old Testament.

Answer 4

What do you want -- poetry? Take a look at Song of Solomon. You want story? Look at Esther, or the life of David.

You have to read it with an understanding of the whole -- that the entire epic account is held together by one underlying them. That theme is Jesus, the Saviour that will redeem mankind. The Old Testament makes much more sense when you're reading with that in mind, and seeing the foreshadowing, the pictures and examples set out.

Answer 5

The old testament of the Bible is mostly a history of God's chosen people, the Isrealites and of the fall of man into sin. It also foreshadows the events that are to come later in the new testament and also for later in the future. The new testament is the good news that we no longer have to live in sin. It is the story of the way to salvation and eternal life. It contains the gospel of Jesus Christ. I would urge you to begin with the gospel of Matthew. I hope you can overcome tyour feelings of boredom to learn about something tha can be for your greater good.

Answer 6

Genesis is the book of families, as Dr. J. Vernon McGee calls it. It tells the story of the creation of the earth and Man, and the major events that happened.

If you are new to reading the Bible, try reading the book of Mark first. Then Luke, John, Acts, Romans, Corinthians... Then read Matthew when you are more familiar with the Bible. Genesis and Matthew are harder books to read for new readers.

Answer 7

Your mom has to tell you five hundred times to clean your room, wash your hands, come to dinner, etc. Of course God has to repeat to us a million times over things that are REALLY important. We obviously don't get it otherwise. (Yeah, I'm only half joking.)

Keep in mind that the Bible is a collection of entried by a variety of authors. Each person had a story to tell and some of those stories will overlap. If you hear it more than once in the Bible, chances are you need to really pay extra attention to it.

Answer 8

You obviously weren't paying attention in lit class.

Describing the creation of the universe in about 30 verses is quite a feat, and it's nicely constructed.

Did you get to the flood? That's quite a story.

That's probably as far as you got. You haven't read about the patriarchs, the enslavement of the Jews in Egypt, the Exodus, the taking of the land, the establishment of government, etc.

And that's just the history books. You haven't read any of the poetry, none of the prophecy, and none of the New Testament. In short, you're judging the book by its cover.

Keep reading.

Answer 9

Yeah, the Old Testament is kind of like that. The New Testament is where things start to get kind of interesting. Death, dismemberment, genocide, and that sort of thing. The book of Revelations is a real trip, actually. Try reading some of the prophecies and seeing how your knowledge of current science and technology compares. Maybe you can figure out what they're talking about?

Most Biblical scholars will agree that the Bible is not really meant to be read cover to cover, but that a great deal of skipping around is necessary to truly understand the whole thing.

If you're really interested in learning it, check out a Christian bookstore near you and invest in a Bible Study guide--it can help make sense out of things.

Answer 10

Oh, so you missed the creation account? The story of the flood, the historical account of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their families? The story about Joseph? Perhaps you also missed the historical account of the Exodus and God taking His people out of Egypt and into the promised land? I know you didn't get into the gospels accounts or the deep theology of Paul, Peter and John. Perhaps you should stick to Harry Potter, it may be more to your liking.

Answer 11

Try one of the other writers of the Bible. If you read 200 pages, you never got beyond the writings of Moses.
Try John's Gospel, then his three short Epistles.
Then try Genesis again. The tie-ins will be remarkable, and make for much more interesting reading.