What do you think?
Rate this book
The Word on Fire Bible #3
The Word on Fire Bible: The Pentateuch
The Word on Fire Bible is a groundbreaking series introducing readers to the strange, colorful world of the Bible. It was designed to appeal not just to Christians, but to nonbelievers, searchers, and those with far more questions than answers. It doesn’t presume any experience with the Bible; in fact, it was created for people reading the Bible seriously for the first time, who may be unsure of what to make of its many events and characters.
Inside this volume, you’ll find the Pentateuch—Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy—surrounded by illuminating artwork and helpful commentary from Bishop Robert Barron, the Church Fathers, and some of the greatest saints, mystics, artists, and scholars throughout history. You’ll discover insights from Origen, Teresa of Kolkata, Thomas Merton, Jerome, Hans Urs von Balthasar, Francis de Sales, Teresa of Avila, John of the Cross, and many other teachers in the way of the Spirit.
The translation used in The Word on Fire Bible is the New Revised Standard Version: Catholic Edition (NRSV-CE), which has received wide acclaim from academics and Church leaders. It stands out because of its accuracy and readability, being as literal as possible yet as free as necessary to make the meaning clear in graceful, understandable English. It’s a wonderful translation—both for those who have never read the Bible and for those who have studied it for years.
Inside this volume, you’ll find the Pentateuch—Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy—surrounded by illuminating artwork and helpful commentary from Bishop Robert Barron, the Church Fathers, and some of the greatest saints, mystics, artists, and scholars throughout history. You’ll discover insights from Origen, Teresa of Kolkata, Thomas Merton, Jerome, Hans Urs von Balthasar, Francis de Sales, Teresa of Avila, John of the Cross, and many other teachers in the way of the Spirit.
The translation used in The Word on Fire Bible is the New Revised Standard Version: Catholic Edition (NRSV-CE), which has received wide acclaim from academics and Church leaders. It stands out because of its accuracy and readability, being as literal as possible yet as free as necessary to make the meaning clear in graceful, understandable English. It’s a wonderful translation—both for those who have never read the Bible and for those who have studied it for years.
832 pages, Paperback
Published May 30, 2023
64 people are currently reading
103 people want to read
About the author
Robert Barron
217 books839 followersBishop Robert Emmet Barron is an acclaimed author, speaker, and theologian. He is the former Francis Cardinal George Professor of Faith and Culture at Mundelein Seminary near Chicago and also is the founder of Word On Fire (www.WordOnFire.org).
Bishop Barron is the creator and host of CATHOLICISM, a groundbreaking ten-part documentary series and study program about the Catholic faith. He is a passionate student of art, architecture, music and history, which he calls upon throughout his global travels in the making of the documentary.
Word On Fire programs are broadcast regularly on WGN America, Relevant Radio, CatholicTV, EWTN, the popular Word on Fire YouTube Channel, and the Word on Fire website, which offers daily blogs, articles, commentaries, and over ten years of weekly sermon podcasts. In 2010, Father Barron was the first priest to have a national show on a secular television network since the 1950s.
Fr. Barron received his Masters Degree in Philosophy from the Catholic University of America in Washington DC in 1982 and his doctorate in Sacred Theology from the Institut Catholique in 1992. He was ordained to the priesthood in 1986 and has been a professor of systematic theology at the nation's largest Catholic seminary, the University of St. Mary of the Lake/Mundelein Seminary since 1992. He was visiting professor at the University of Notre Dame in 2002 and at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in 2007. He was also twice scholar in residence at the Pontifical North American College at the Vatican.
In addition, Fr. Barron lectures extensively in the United States and abroad. Cardinal Francis George calls Fr. Barron “one of the Church’s best messengers.
Fr. Barron was baptized at Queen of All Saints Basilica in Chicago and grew up at St. John of the Cross parish in Western Springs, Illinois.
WordOnFire.org - Fr. Barron's website launched in 1999 and currently draws over 1 million visitors a year from every continent. Fr. Barron posts weekly video clips, commentaries and radio sermons and offers an audio archive of over 500 homilies. Podcasts of his sermons are widely used by tens of thousands of visitors each month.
TV - EWTN (The Eternal Word Television Network) and CatholicTV broadcasts Fr. Barron's DVDs to a worldwide audience of over 150 million people.
Radio - Since 1999, Fr. Barron's weekly Word on Fire program has been broadcast in Chicago (WGN) and throughout the country (Relevant Radio - 950 AM Chicago) to 28 million listeners in 17 states. Fr. Barron also is a regular commentator on the "Busted Halo Show" on the Sirius satellite radio network based in New York.
DVDs - Fr. Barron's DVDs are used as powerful faith formation tools in universities, schools, churches and homes around the country. The series includes Seven Deadly Sins, Seven Lively Virtues; Faith Clips; Conversion: Following the Call of Christ; and Untold Blessing: Three Paths to Holiness.
YouTube - With over 180 online video commentaries by Fr. Barron, over 1 million viewers worldwide have made him the most popular of any evangelist on YouTube. These frequent, high-quality productions include brief and lively theological reviews of contemporary culture, including movies such as No Country for Old Men, Apocalypto, and The Departed, a three-part critical review of Christopher Hitchen's book God is Not Great, The Discovery Channel's The Jesus Tomb, the HBO series "The Sopranos", "Rome" and more.
Missions - MISSION CHICAGO features evangelization lectures by Fr. Barron at the behest of Cardinal George. These special missions and presentations throughout the Archdiocese are centered in downtown Chicago and attract business, civic, and cultural leaders.
Books - His numerous books and essays serve as critical educational and inspirational tools for seminarians, priests, parishioners and young people worldwide. His published works are also central to the numerous retreats, workshop and talks that h
Bishop Barron is the creator and host of CATHOLICISM, a groundbreaking ten-part documentary series and study program about the Catholic faith. He is a passionate student of art, architecture, music and history, which he calls upon throughout his global travels in the making of the documentary.
Word On Fire programs are broadcast regularly on WGN America, Relevant Radio, CatholicTV, EWTN, the popular Word on Fire YouTube Channel, and the Word on Fire website, which offers daily blogs, articles, commentaries, and over ten years of weekly sermon podcasts. In 2010, Father Barron was the first priest to have a national show on a secular television network since the 1950s.
Fr. Barron received his Masters Degree in Philosophy from the Catholic University of America in Washington DC in 1982 and his doctorate in Sacred Theology from the Institut Catholique in 1992. He was ordained to the priesthood in 1986 and has been a professor of systematic theology at the nation's largest Catholic seminary, the University of St. Mary of the Lake/Mundelein Seminary since 1992. He was visiting professor at the University of Notre Dame in 2002 and at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in 2007. He was also twice scholar in residence at the Pontifical North American College at the Vatican.
In addition, Fr. Barron lectures extensively in the United States and abroad. Cardinal Francis George calls Fr. Barron “one of the Church’s best messengers.
Fr. Barron was baptized at Queen of All Saints Basilica in Chicago and grew up at St. John of the Cross parish in Western Springs, Illinois.
WordOnFire.org - Fr. Barron's website launched in 1999 and currently draws over 1 million visitors a year from every continent. Fr. Barron posts weekly video clips, commentaries and radio sermons and offers an audio archive of over 500 homilies. Podcasts of his sermons are widely used by tens of thousands of visitors each month.
TV - EWTN (The Eternal Word Television Network) and CatholicTV broadcasts Fr. Barron's DVDs to a worldwide audience of over 150 million people.
Radio - Since 1999, Fr. Barron's weekly Word on Fire program has been broadcast in Chicago (WGN) and throughout the country (Relevant Radio - 950 AM Chicago) to 28 million listeners in 17 states. Fr. Barron also is a regular commentator on the "Busted Halo Show" on the Sirius satellite radio network based in New York.
DVDs - Fr. Barron's DVDs are used as powerful faith formation tools in universities, schools, churches and homes around the country. The series includes Seven Deadly Sins, Seven Lively Virtues; Faith Clips; Conversion: Following the Call of Christ; and Untold Blessing: Three Paths to Holiness.
YouTube - With over 180 online video commentaries by Fr. Barron, over 1 million viewers worldwide have made him the most popular of any evangelist on YouTube. These frequent, high-quality productions include brief and lively theological reviews of contemporary culture, including movies such as No Country for Old Men, Apocalypto, and The Departed, a three-part critical review of Christopher Hitchen's book God is Not Great, The Discovery Channel's The Jesus Tomb, the HBO series "The Sopranos", "Rome" and more.
Missions - MISSION CHICAGO features evangelization lectures by Fr. Barron at the behest of Cardinal George. These special missions and presentations throughout the Archdiocese are centered in downtown Chicago and attract business, civic, and cultural leaders.
Books - His numerous books and essays serve as critical educational and inspirational tools for seminarians, priests, parishioners and young people worldwide. His published works are also central to the numerous retreats, workshop and talks that h
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
June 18, 2024
Merry Christmas to us! I discovered that I had a LOT of reward points from my credit card and used them to get this for the household. I love the Pentateuch and am really enjoying diving in every morning.
FINAL
This is one that I would read some and then put down for stretches of time. The Torah itself is lengthy and complex. When the commentary is added, it just gets even more so. I'm not complaining! But, like the elephant, it is something you eat one bite at a time.
As with the other two volumes in the series, this is truly a cathedral in print, as they like to call it. This one has even more art and those commentaries truly open the art up on new levels for me.
The commentary dug deep into the Church Fathers and best of contemporary Scripture study. The topics were always interesting and always helped explain context as well as theological truths that lay below the surface. I was especially interested at how much the comments linked the Old Testament readings to Christ. This volume really illustrates what St. Augustine said, "In the Old Testament the new lies hidden, in the New Testament the old is laid open.
Highly recommended.
FINAL
This is one that I would read some and then put down for stretches of time. The Torah itself is lengthy and complex. When the commentary is added, it just gets even more so. I'm not complaining! But, like the elephant, it is something you eat one bite at a time.
As with the other two volumes in the series, this is truly a cathedral in print, as they like to call it. This one has even more art and those commentaries truly open the art up on new levels for me.
The commentary dug deep into the Church Fathers and best of contemporary Scripture study. The topics were always interesting and always helped explain context as well as theological truths that lay below the surface. I was especially interested at how much the comments linked the Old Testament readings to Christ. This volume really illustrates what St. Augustine said, "In the Old Testament the new lies hidden, in the New Testament the old is laid open.
Highly recommended.
June 19, 2024
I found this to be the most helpful and insightful edition of the word on fire study Bible series. Bishop Barron and his team did a great job incorporating thinking from our best catholic theologians and the early fathers of the church. What had been some relatively dry reading in the past became deeper and more insightful. I’m grateful.
As I move onto Joshua and the rest of the old testament, I wish there was another edition waiting for me. I will make do with other study guides this year and hope that word on fire publishes some thing next year when I revisit the old testament.
As I move onto Joshua and the rest of the old testament, I wish there was another edition waiting for me. I will make do with other study guides this year and hope that word on fire publishes some thing next year when I revisit the old testament.
August 9, 2025
Any study Bible that makes Pentateuch a real page-turner has done its job. This is one of the most enjoyable Bible studies I've done in a while. Robert Barron is Roman Catholic, but the notes are very much written from a little-c catholic point of view. Instead of one sentence comments on every single verse, Barron gives page-long essays every few chapters, interspersed with paragraph-long quotes from the Church Fathers and more recent theologians. This makes it much more readable than most study Bibles I've seen. One of my favorite features was the art; he periodically includes classic works of art related to passages and includes commentary on the themes and the details of the pieces.
Looking forward to reading more volumes in this series. Highly recommend!
Looking forward to reading more volumes in this series. Highly recommend!
March 24, 2025
Excellent choice of artwork to go along with the Pentateuch. Normally, reading through these first five books of the Bible can be a slog, but with this Bible, I look forward to seeing what interesting painting or commentary will go with each chapter.
July 27, 2025
Beautiful, easy to read edition of the Bible with plentiful commentary and gorgeous reproductions of artwork accompanied by essays explaining their meaning in relation to the Scriptures.
April 6, 2024
I have tried reading the Bible before, two or three times and just couldn't fathom it. The series Word on Fire with all the commentary's by not only Bishop Baron, and many others explains further the passages and is a joy to read.
A big THANK YOU, to my daughter who made the gospels available to me, which I found fascinating and now finishing the Pentateuch, has made me far more knowledgeable about the Bible. "Reading behind the sayings," has opened me up to learn more.
A big THANK YOU, to my daughter who made the gospels available to me, which I found fascinating and now finishing the Pentateuch, has made me far more knowledgeable about the Bible. "Reading behind the sayings," has opened me up to learn more.
September 27, 2023
This is another excellent volume in Word On Fire's publication of the Bible. The art is great and the various quotes and commentaries from the entire Christian tradition help to understand these ancient texts.
July 7, 2023
Excellent. Just as I remember it.
March 7, 2024
It may seem weird to write a review about the first five books of the Bible. However, what Word on Fire has done is glorious and sumptious. From the additional articles, and the artwork, it was a total joy to work through it and read it. I am looking forward to the release of the next volume!
August 27, 2025
Creating a Golden Calf is definitely something the audience should not try at home.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews