# Locusts! Prophecies! Redemption! Apocalypse! Your Favorite Book of the Bible, Please **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 16, 2001, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/locusts-prophecies-redemption-apocalypse-your-favorite-book-of-the-bible-please/87737 "2001-10-16T15:31:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Humble\_Servant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/47e85d/32.png) [@Humble\_Servant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Humble_Servant)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2001, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/locusts-prophecies-redemption-apocalypse-your-favorite-book-of-the-bible-please/87737/1 "2001-10-16T15:31:38Z")
I like Isaiah best. “The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, have seen a great light.” “And like a hunted gazelle, or sheep with none to gather them, every man will turn to his own people, and every man will flee to his own land.” The words are simple but not simplistic. The rythm is excellent. Everything about Isaiah is dignified. While the words are sure-footed and evocative, Isaiah is not easy: “The LORD has a sword; it is sated with blood, it is gorged with fat, with the blood of lambs and goats, with the fat of the kidneys of rams…Their land shall be soaked with blood, and their soil made rich with fat. For the LORD has a day of vengeance, a year of recompense for the cause of Zion.” Isaiah also has children handling snakes and women being blamed for loose morals. Challenging; beautiful nonetheless. Also, Isaiah’s quotability quotient is very high. Since my literary obsession is “the interconnectedness of all things,” the fact that references to Isaiah’s language get made continually is good. It is of course cited explicity and implicity in the New Testament. It also rescues annually those do-it-yourself versions of Handel’s _Messiah_ with a bit a grandeur: “And the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, the everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” So what book speaks most to you? Please post examples of a few verses that you really like. [Here is a link to a Bible site](http://etext.virginia.edu/frames/bibleframe.html)–site chosen because of its multiple translations and search engine to help find particular passages. (Note that this is a malice-free post–those who wish to argue that treating “the Bible as literature” is a dismissal of religion are invited to take it to GD. Let’s work under the assumption that believers and non-believers alike can appreciate Biblical language.) ---
**Author:** ![scout1222](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/34f0e0/32.png) [@scout1222](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scout1222)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2001, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/locusts-prophecies-redemption-apocalypse-your-favorite-book-of-the-bible-please/87737/2 "2001-10-16T19:29:10Z")
Can’t belive I’m responding to this. Okay, so I’m not a big Bible reader. In fact, my one attempt to read the whole thing fell apart 'round about the whole “begat” sequence. But I think this is a pretty good thread idea, so I thought I’d give it a bump. But in high school I was a member of Job’s Daughters. As such, I was thoroughly exposed to the workings of the book of Job. Not so much reading the actual book, but certainly learning the story itself. I like the idea that one who is faithful will be rewarded in the end. Though I’m not religious like that, I can apply it to other areas. That those who are loyal and believe in something will be rewarded for that. Oh, and for the citation portion, I’ll throw out the only actual verse that is directly instructed to us in Job’s Daughters. It’s the 42nd chapter, 15th verse, which _roughly_ reads “…and in all the land were no women found so fair as the daughters of Job…” I feel pretty… oh, so pretty… 😃 ---
**Author:** ![SpoilerVirgin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4491bb/32.png) [@SpoilerVirgin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpoilerVirgin)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2001, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/locusts-prophecies-redemption-apocalypse-your-favorite-book-of-the-bible-please/87737/3 "2001-10-16T22:26:56Z")
**Ecclesiastes** > [@](#): > > What has been is what will be, > and what has been done is what will be done; > and there is nothing new under the sun. > Is there a thing of which it is said, > “See, this is new”? > It has been already, > in the ages before us. > [@](#): > > For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: > a time to be born, and a time to die; > a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted; > a time to kill, and a time to heal; > a time to break down, and a time to build up; > a time to weep, and a time to laugh; > a time to mourn, and a time to dance; > a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; > a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; > a time to seek, and a time to lose; > a time to keep, and a time to cast away; > a time to rend, and a time to sew; > a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; > a time to love, and a time to hate; > a time for war, and a time for peace. > [@](#): > > And I commend enjoyment, for man has no good thing under the sun but to eat and drink, and enjoy himself, for this will go with him in his toil through the days of life which God gives him under the sun. > [@](#): > > Again I saw that under the sun the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor bread to the wise, nor riches to the intelligent, nor favor to the men of skill; but time and chance happen to them all. I can’t pretend to understand it all, but I find it moving and comforting. **Job** is good too. ---
**Author:** ![DAVEW0071](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e19b73/32.png) [@DAVEW0071](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DAVEW0071)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2001, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/locusts-prophecies-redemption-apocalypse-your-favorite-book-of-the-bible-please/87737/4 "2001-10-16T22:32:27Z")
Psalms is right up there, but I like Proverbs too. Both have wonderful poetic qualities, great imagery, and much wisdom and comfort. John is my favorite Gospel. It just seems more powerful in its narrative than the other three. ---
**Author:** ![FisherQueen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/58f4c7/32.png) [@FisherQueen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FisherQueen)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2001, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/locusts-prophecies-redemption-apocalypse-your-favorite-book-of-the-bible-please/87737/5 "2001-10-16T22:36:34Z")
I’m torn. Until recently, my favorite, hands- down, was James. Short, simple, concrete advice on how to make the world better while not being a jerk. But I got stuck in an extremely legalistic church, then had to deal with the trauma of eventually leaving the church of my childhood for a more liberal one, with all the associated guilt and anxiety and strained family conversations, and I found that Romans, with its emphasis on freedom from legalism, was incredibly comforting and moving. Then again, John is a good story. ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2001, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/locusts-prophecies-redemption-apocalypse-your-favorite-book-of-the-bible-please/87737/6 "2001-10-16T22:45:43Z")
Ecclesiastes was my favorite book for a long time, but I reread it recently, and realized that it wasn’t that great as a whole. It’s still a good book for some of its passages, but it’s not well-connected. ---
**Author:** ![gallows\_fodder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8c91f0/32.png) [@gallows\_fodder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gallows_fodder)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2001, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/locusts-prophecies-redemption-apocalypse-your-favorite-book-of-the-bible-please/87737/7 "2001-10-16T23:55:07Z")
**The Book of Hebrews** , for its message. I love how it describes Christ as both the sacrifice and the priest who sacrifices. > [@](#): > > Since therefore, the children share flesh and blood, he himself likewise shared the same things, so that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by the fear of death. For it is clear that he did not come to help angels, but the descendants of Abraham. Therefore he had to become like his brothers and sisters in every respect, so that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make a sacrifice of atonement for the sins of the people. _Because he himself was tested by what he suffered, he is able to help those who are being tested._ –Hebrews 2:14-18 **Revelation** and the **Psalms** for their poetry. ---
**Author:** ![Katisha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/bcef8e/32.png) [@Katisha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Katisha)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2001, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/locusts-prophecies-redemption-apocalypse-your-favorite-book-of-the-bible-please/87737/8 "2001-10-17T00:20:43Z")
Isaiah’s my favorite too, because it’s so poetic. (Also, the fact that a lot of the _Messiah_ libretto comes from Isaiah is a big point in its favor. :D) As for the New Testament – I don’t know, I sorta like Luke… Oh, and as far as **Humble Servant’s** last comment goes – we had a Bible as Lit course at my (Catholic) high school, or to be more specific, two of them, one on the Old Testament and one on the New. They weren’t _called_ that, but that’s what they were, although the OT course was more literary. (The NT one had a more historical focus.) Best religion course I took, IMO. ---
**Author:** ![TheeGrumpy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/779978/32.png) [@TheeGrumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheeGrumpy)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2001, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/locusts-prophecies-redemption-apocalypse-your-favorite-book-of-the-bible-please/87737/9 "2001-10-17T00:22:34Z")
Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians (1Cor.). It’s a laff riot! Take Paul’s advice on hairstyles (11:14) “Does not the very nature of things teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a disgrace to him?” On DNA (15:39) “All flesh is not the same: Men have one kind of flesh, animals have another, birds another and fish another.” On the urgent need to end slavery (7:21) “Were you a slave when you were called? Don’t let it trouble you – although if you gain your freedom, do so.” On churchmen filing lawsuits (6:7) “The very fact that you have lawsuits among you means you have been completely defeated already. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be cheated?” There’s the ever popular 1Cor 14:34 “Women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as the Law says.” And the one where Paul gives the whole game away, (15:14) “If Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith.” Well, okay then. (All quotes NIV.) ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2001, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/locusts-prophecies-redemption-apocalypse-your-favorite-book-of-the-bible-please/87737/10 "2001-10-17T00:25:43Z")
I have problems picking one book. I have a lot of favorite passages though, and, IMHO, the very best is Romans 8:37-39. It’s going to be in my funeral service as the NT reading. ---
**Author:** ![jab1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ee7513/32.png) [@jab1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jab1)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2001, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/locusts-prophecies-redemption-apocalypse-your-favorite-book-of-the-bible-please/87737/11 "2001-10-17T01:55:47Z")
Have any of you seen [Apocamon?](http://www.e-sheep.com/apocamon/) It’s the book of Revelations as if it were a Pokemon cartoon. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Zagna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d2c977/32.png) [@El\_Zagna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Zagna)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2001, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/locusts-prophecies-redemption-apocalypse-your-favorite-book-of-the-bible-please/87737/12 "2001-10-17T02:08:46Z")
Check out Song of Songs aka Song of Soloman. Lots of stuff like this: Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth-- for your love is more delightful than wine. Pleasing is the fragrance of your perfumes; your name is like perfume poured out. No wonder the maidens love you! Take me away with you–let us hurry! Let the king bring me into his chambers. We rejoice and delight in you; we will praise your love more than wine. How right they are to adore you! ---
**Author:** ![Mofo\_Rising](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Mofo\_Rising](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mofo_Rising)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2001, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/locusts-prophecies-redemption-apocalypse-your-favorite-book-of-the-bible-please/87737/13 "2001-10-17T02:27:10Z")
I haven’t read too many books of the Bible. Okay, I’ve only read Genesis and Ecclesiastes, and the second only because I was verifying a quote in Hubert Selby’s **Last Exit to Brooklyn**. But since this is an open thread, I’m going to say my favorite is Ecclesiastes. It’s good reading for anybody who has been ego-tripping a little too much. How can you not love a book that opens with these words (NIV): > [@](#): > > “Meaningless! Meaningless!” > says the Teacher. > “Utterly meaningless! > Everything is meaningless!” > > Ecclesiastes 1:2 This is of course the “he who increases knowledge, increases sorrow” book. I like it for its dogmatic everything is meaningless stance. The whole book overall I wouldn’t recommend as a life philosophy. The “be content with your own toil” could easily be construed as “never try”. That would be a terrible mistake to make. There are some other interesting quotes. Take this one: > [@](#): > > A man may have a hundred children and live many years; yet no matter how long he lives, if he cannot enjoy his prosperity and does not receive proper burial, I say that a stillborn child is better off than he. > > Ecclesiastes 6:3 And my personal favorite: > [@](#): > > Words from a wise man’s mouth > are gracious, > but a fool is consumed by his > own lips. > At the beginning his words are > folly; > at the end they are wicked madness– > and the fool multiplies words. > > Ecclesiastes 10:12-13 And as far as the “time to be born and a time to die”, all I could think of was the Byrds and hippies. That’s my uninformed opinion. (I’ll get to the rest of the books eventually. Honest!) I’d like to see a reverse of this thread, “Which book of the Bible is your least favorite?” I also just realized my favorite book fits my sig line quite nicely. ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_Wright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@Steve\_Wright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_Wright)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2001, 10:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/locusts-prophecies-redemption-apocalypse-your-favorite-book-of-the-bible-please/87737/14 "2001-10-17T10:23:27Z")
I’m going to put in a vote for the book of Esther here - the world’s first melodrama, complete with spunky heroine and eminently hissable villain. Also, if you read the “Additions to the Book of Esther” in the Apocrypha, you realise that this book got the attention of a proper editor - said “Additions” being mostly junk that slows the story down, and was therefore cut. Best New Testament book? The Acts of the Apostles - lots of incident there, full of good stuff. Most meaningful to me in a spiritual sense? Umm… that wasn’t the question, was it? ---
**Author:** ![Badtz\_Maru](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e36b37/32.png) [@Badtz\_Maru](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Badtz_Maru)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2001, 11:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/locusts-prophecies-redemption-apocalypse-your-favorite-book-of-the-bible-please/87737/15 "2001-10-17T11:30:02Z")
It’s hard to pick one, but I really like Job, I think it’s funny. Poor Job has all these questions, and gets various inadequate answers from the people he talks to, and when God finally shows up to talk to him, instead of getting answers God gets sarcastic on him, goes on for a page or so about how mighty he is, and leaves without giving him an answer. I also like the early ones, Genesis and Exodus, interesting mythology there. I even enjoy Leviticus, I love the whacky rules and how they are worded. I also recall really enjoying parts of the first book of Kings. Oh yeah, and the Song of Solomon…for an atheist/agnostic, I sure love the Bible. ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2001, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/locusts-prophecies-redemption-apocalypse-your-favorite-book-of-the-bible-please/87737/16 "2001-10-17T12:21:29Z")
My favorite Bible book is John. My favorite verse is John 8:58. My favorite translation of it is NIV: “Before Abraham was born, I AM.” ---
**Author:** ![Humble\_Servant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/47e85d/32.png) [@Humble\_Servant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Humble_Servant)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2001, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/locusts-prophecies-redemption-apocalypse-your-favorite-book-of-the-bible-please/87737/17 "2001-10-17T15:02:55Z")
I mangled the first passage I quoted from Isaiah–here is the correct quotation: > [@](#): > > The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, on them has light shined. **scout** –I think is is absolutely charming that your group found the one sunny bit in Job and adopted it as your own. Really neat–of course Job’s first set of daughters were all crushed when a house fell on them and their deaths were one of the chief sources of his agony. **Badtz** is right about Job too–it gets taught in philosophy classes as a dialog (think Plato) with 4-5 voices debating the problem of why bad things happen to good people. It is too good to reduce to “the patience of Job” which is all some people seem to know about it. **SpoilerVirgin** and **Mofo** like another of my favorites, Ecclesiastes. One of the verses quoted is the source of “eat, drink and be merry,” and another is often rendered “vanity of vanities, all is vanity,” both using the King James translation. These show a bit of the tremendous influence of that translation. Nothing wrong with the other versions either, though; they just sound better to my ear that has heard the traditional translations. **DaveW** : Here’s a bit of a Psalm I like: > [@](#): > > When I consider the heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars which thou hast ordained; what is man that thou art mindful of him? Now **FisherQueen, gallows fodder, Baker and Grumpy** are all made of sterner stuff they me because they like Paul. I’m spoiled: I want poetry, parables and epic; Paul is so serious. This probably just means that I need to read him again. **Katisha**! My favorite NT book is also Luke. I feel like I know you (not in the biblical sense, of course ;)). **bnorton** (is your user name related to T.S. Eliot’s _burnt norton_)? How YOU doin’? (I’m trying to make my threads more exciting with gratuitous flirting–hope you don’t mind.) I searched for all instances of “breasts” in the Song of Solomon: > [@](#): > > I was a wall, and my breasts were like towers. > [@](#): > > You are as stately as a palm tree, and your breasts are like its clusters. > [@](#): > > Your two breasts are like two fawns, twins of a gazelle, that feed among the lilies. Like I said, I’m trying to jazz up my threads 😃 **Steve** : I heard just yesterday that Esther is the only OT book not represented in the Dead Sea Scrolls, and that it is also the only book that does not contain the word “God.” It is a really good story. I can also really relate to the story of King David. He screwed up about as badly as possible (which is the part I can relate to)–sending a man to die to be able to take his wife–but was really sorry, and got a second chance. Thanks for your replies, everyone. I’ve enjoyed them a lot. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2001, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/locusts-prophecies-redemption-apocalypse-your-favorite-book-of-the-bible-please/87737/18 "2001-10-17T17:57:01Z")
The Gospel of Matthew. It just seems to be the most down-to-Earth of the Gospels. I’ve always been especially fond, for some reason, of the story of the Good Thief crucified beside Jesus. Unfortunately, I can’t seem to search up the reference at the moment… ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2001, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/locusts-prophecies-redemption-apocalypse-your-favorite-book-of-the-bible-please/87737/19 "2001-10-17T19:29:03Z")
Esther & Ruth definitely when I was little. Now, Song of Solomon and Psalms are gaining on them. ---
**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2001, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/locusts-prophecies-redemption-apocalypse-your-favorite-book-of-the-bible-please/87737/20 "2001-10-17T19:41:51Z")
Ruth, because it’s a nice little story about ordinary people. I also like to imagine Daniel taking place in corporate America instead of the Chaldean Empire. A CEO calls a meeting of his top financial analysts to a meeting and says “I had a terrific brainstorm last night, and I want you guys to run the numbers on it. The catch is, I’m not going to tell you what it was. I mainly want to see if any of you are any good or are just riding on BS.” Kind of when they’re down-sizing and they call you in to “interview for your job” all over again, to decide who should get the ax. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/locusts-prophecies-redemption-apocalypse-your-favorite-book-of-the-bible-please/87737.md?page=2)