Sacred Scholar

For a large part of my life, the Bible was more than just a book—it was the center of everything I believed. I was a Bible literalist, a fundamentalist Christian, and I approached scripture as the unquestionable, divinely inspired Word of God. Every word was true, every story was historical fact, and every command was to be taken seriously. I read it daily. I studied it in depth. I built my worldview around it.

But life has a way of changing us. About ten years ago, I began to feel the quiet tug of doubt. It wasn’t rebellion or anger that drove me—it was curiosity. I started asking questions that didn’t have easy answers. I began to see that the Bible wasn’t a single book written by a single hand with a single message. It was a complex library of ancient texts, written over centuries, by different people, in different cultures, for different purposes.

And slowly, the way I read the Bible changed.

Today, I no longer read it as scripture. I read it as literature, history, myth, and philosophy. And I’m more fascinated by it than ever.

This post marks the beginning of a new project that’s been on my heart for a while: I’m going to read through the Bible, chapter by chapter, and write about it—not from a place of faith, but from a place of curiosity. I want to explore what these texts meant in their historical context. Who wrote them? What was happening in the world at the time? What cultural values, political struggles, or religious shifts shaped these writings?

This won’t be a theological study in the traditional sense. I’m not here to affirm or deny anyone’s faith. I’m not trying to convert, deconvert, or provoke anyone. My goal isn’t to destroy belief or promote disbelief. My mission is simply this: to learn, and to invite others to learn with me.

The Bible has shaped much of Western thought and identity. Even if you’re not religious, it’s impossible to escape its influence. From art and literature to politics and law, its echoes are everywhere. And yet, so many of us—whether we were raised in church or never opened the book—have never really looked at it in context.

That’s where I want to start.

Why Chapter by Chapter?

Reading the Bible chapter by chapter may sound tedious to some, but I believe there’s value in the slow, deliberate pace. Each chapter contains layers—some obvious, others buried beneath centuries of translation, commentary, and tradition. Going slowly allows us to ask better questions: Why is this here? What’s missing? Who benefits from this narrative? What assumptions are we making when we read it?

Some chapters are poetic and rich with symbolism. Others are dry lists of names or laws that can seem irrelevant to a modern reader. But even those seemingly boring sections have historical significance. They tell us how communities were structured, what they valued, how they preserved identity and memory.

I’ll also be paying attention to how the chapters fit into broader themes—creation and destruction, exile and return, power and vulnerability, law and grace. These patterns repeat and evolve across the Bible, and seeing them unfold gradually helps us understand not just the texts themselves, but the people who carried them forward.

The Historical Approach

One of the most important shifts in how I read the Bible came when I started looking at it as a product of history.

The Bible wasn’t written in a vacuum. It came out of real places and real moments in time: tribal conflicts in the ancient Near East, the rise and fall of empires, the trauma of exile, the politics of temple worship, the influence of Greek philosophy and Roman occupation. These events shaped the stories that were told and how they were remembered.

For example, the story of the flood in Genesis doesn’t stand alone. It echoes older Mesopotamian myths like the Epic of Gilgamesh. That doesn’t make the story less meaningful—but it does make it more interesting. It shows how ancient people borrowed, adapted, and reimagined stories to fit their own theological and cultural needs.

When we look at the Bible historically, we also see how its authors had different (and sometimes conflicting) perspectives. The book of Kings and the book of Chronicles, for instance, cover much of the same history—but with different agendas. One is more critical of the monarchy, the other more favorable. These aren’t contradictions to be smoothed over—they’re windows into real human experiences and the politics of storytelling.

What You Can Expect

In each post, I’ll take one chapter of the Bible and break it down. I’ll summarize what it says, point out any unusual or striking elements, and explore the historical context—what we know from archaeology, other ancient texts, or scholarly research. I’ll also touch on how certain passages have been interpreted (or misused) over time.

Some entries might be shorter, especially for chapters that are more genealogical or repetitive. Others might be longer when there’s a lot to unpack. I’ll cite sources where appropriate, and always welcome respectful conversation in the comments.

If you’re here to learn, you’re in the right place. You don’t have to agree with my take. In fact, I hope this project sparks disagreement, curiosity, and dialogue. That’s the heart of good scholarship—questioning, exploring, challenging our assumptions.

Who Is This For?

This project is for the seekers. The skeptics. The curious. The believers with questions and the nonbelievers with open minds. It’s for anyone who wants to approach the Bible not just as a sacred text, but as a cultural artifact—one that has shaped the world for better or worse.

Whether you’re a former fundamentalist like me, someone exploring religion for the first time, or just a fan of ancient history, I hope you’ll find something meaningful here.

This is not about bashing the Bible. It’s about understanding it. And in understanding it better, perhaps we’ll understand ourselves a bit more, too.

Coming Next: Genesis 1 – Creation, Cosmos, and Competing Myths

In my next post, I’ll dive into Genesis 1: the iconic creation story. We’ll talk about how it compares to other ancient origin stories, how it reflects a particular worldview, and why the structure of the chapter itself reveals so much about the values of the culture that produced it.

Thanks for joining me on this journey. If you want to follow along, consider subscribing or bookmarking the site. Let’s explore this ancient text with fresh eyes, together. Feel free to add your thoughts in the comments.