Too. Many. Words.

Just had a little brainwave. In theory I'll all fine with Bibles with sections every now-and-then explaining some historical context or suggesting a point of application, but in practice I think they suck. Now I never had one of those Bibles growing up, but I do know that I didn't know what to do with the one I did have, other than to ponder the intriguing line-drawings, and I know that if I had have had one I would have devoured every sectioned word and kept well clear of the actual biblical text. Maybe this isn't so for everyone, so I suppose they might not always suck.

But what to do for someone like me with no idea of how to read the Bible? I think what would really help is to make the format like that of modern literature - and different for each genre. So, lay out the narrative sections as you would a fiction novel, the Psalms and other poems like books of poetry, and the letters like emails perhaps. I think that this would stop the whole thing just being a mass of words and complexity and signal to me what to do with each part. ("Oh look, this must be a story, let's get comfy and dive into that world til I'm done."; "Oh and there are poems - I don't really know what to do with them, but I guess maybe I should read them out loud and slow."; "Ooooh look it's an actual letter from this guy Paul.")