Best written Scripture (user search)
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  Best written Scripture (search mode)
Pages: [1]
Poll
Question: Literary merit, not theological merit
#1
Greco-Roman canon (Homer, Hesiod, Ovid)
 
#2
Norse canon
 
#3
Assyrian/Babylonian and other (Esp. Gilgamesh)
 
#4
Hebrew Bible/Old Testament
 
#5
New Testament
 
#6
Hindu canon (Gita, Vedas, etc.)
 
#7
Confucian Classics
 
#8
Koran
 
#9
The Book of Mormon
 
#10
Mikado, you West-centric fool, what about primary texts in Buddhism, Zoroastrianism, Shintoism, etc.
 
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Partisan results

Total Voters: 17

Author Topic: Best written Scripture  (Read 1224 times)
Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.
jmfcst
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« on: April 28, 2011, 05:31:03 PM »
« edited: April 28, 2011, 05:33:54 PM by jmfcst »

within the bible, I would have to say Galatians...Paul takes no prisoners in that letter.  He first shoots the angels, then himself, then Peter&James&John, then Peter&Barnabas.  After he has destroyed all leadership other than Christ himself, both human and angelical,  Paul then turns to his now leaderless audience and explains the simple one step plan of salvation by asking them a series of rhetorical either-or questions related to their relationship with Jesus.  And then he walks them through the OT explaining how the obvious answers to those rhetorical questions were clearly spelled out ages ago.

and after clearing out all the clutter and leaving them with nothing but Christ to focus on, he tells them not to make him clean up their religious clutter again because his body is full of scars from the enemies of the gospel:

Gal 6:17 "Finally, let no one cause me trouble, for I bear on my body the marks of Jesus."

The whole letter is concise, to the point, and is done with an attitude that is both extremely angry and extremely loving...frustrated that he is, once again, having to deal with the same clutter that he has had to battle time and time again.
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Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.
jmfcst
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*****
Posts: 18,212
United States


« Reply #1 on: May 11, 2011, 12:20:07 PM »

As lit, they all pretty much suck. They're written the way a teenaged girl gossips: and then this happened, and then this happened, and then this happened. There's no flow and there are no words to ease transitions. The skill of writing has come a long way since ancient times.

Aside from the genealogical records, which can get rambling,  I would have to totally disagree with that statement.  Many of the books of the bible set out from the opening passage to address a certain topic and follow that topic all the way through to the end of the specific book, building point upon point on top of the opening topic.  Examples:

-   very single statement of the book of Galatians is geared towards addressing the single point of the book (letter).

-   the entire book of Hebrews, which is a pretty sizable letter, addresses the first point made in the opening verse.

Even in OT cases like Genesis, which includes a long list of genealogy, there is still an easily identifiable flow and purpose to the book and it obviously transitions directly into the next book, Exodus. 

So you’ll have to point out an example where you think there is no flow or transition.
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