The Textual World of the Bible

by Michael B. Shepherd

The world of the Bible is a textual world. Its composition and intertextuality are what make it a representation of reality. To understand biblical world making, it is important to understand how biblical books are made and read. The Textual World of the Bible explores the patterns of figuration in biblical composition and the way in which these patterns are read within the Bible (inner-biblical exegesis). This book is an excellent choice for courses in biblical theology and hermeneutics.

144 pages, ebook

First published January 1, 2013

About the author

Michael B. Shepherd is the John and Allie Fogleman Assistant Professor of Old Testament and Hebrew at Louisiana College in Pineville, Louisiana as well as professor of Old Testament and Hebrew at the Caskey School of Divinity.

Reviews

[Derek Woodall · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having recently read Hans Frei’s “Eclipse of Biblical Narrative,” I was greatly looking forward to diving into this shorter work by Shepherd, one who clearly draws out the hermeneutical proposal that Frei offers - only here, Shepherd does so in a masterfully exegetical manner.

A fire quote from the section titled “Some Practical Implications”:

“To meditate in Scripture ‘day and night’ (Josh 1:8; Ps 1:2) is a way of life, not a ‘quiet time.’ Reading (and interpretation) of Scripture is an act of faith and obedience, not merely a means to another end. According to Ps 1:3, it is where the blessed and wise person finds spiritual nourishment and bears spiritual fruit.”

[Jono Spear · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read through this book three times in the last year because it’s that good. While short, it is jam-packed with rich details of how the Bible fits together textually. The opening line, “The Bible is the real world,” is shockingly simple, yet endlessly profound. The implications of this claim are that the Bible is the world as God sees it, the texts (rather than the events) of the Bible are the locus of revelation, and the words of the text create “worlds” in the brain that shape the reader into a person of godly wisdom who finds salvation in Christ.

Dr. Shepherd’s sections, “Scripture is applicable” and “Scripture as the locus of revelation” are helpful clarifications that combat teaching and preaching that miss the point of the text and tack on arbitrary lists of “application” that make the text seem like a moralistic self-help guide. When the Bible is read for its own sake, God’s Spirit does the work of shaping the readers mind, imagination, and heart to delight in the Lord.

[Parker McGoldrick · Rating 5 out of 5]

“The Bible is the real world...[our task] is not to contextualize the Bible to the readers but to contextualize the readers to the Bible.”

[Eddie Hertel · Rating 5 out of 5]

A phenomenal and concise work introducing one into the world of the Bible. The world of the Bible, that is the textual world, is the real world. Shepherd's work excellently shows how the biblical authors expand the picture of this textual and real world, in which God is working through the Messiah. A wonderfully concise and pointed theology of the whole Bible.