Approaching the Bible as Literature

What do you think the Bible says? How does the way the Bible is written affect its meaning? Here is a concise introduction that invites you to interact with the primary text. Interspersed with brief explanations of biblical background and writing techniques are thought-provoking questions about specific readings with space provided for response. This user-engaging approach is enhanced by its sensitivity to readers across the spectrum of belief, from atheist to devout believer. So whether you come to the subject to satisfy historical interest or to appreciate the artistry of Scripture, Approaching the Bible as Literature will deepen your understanding.

""Thomas Schmidt's book is a welcome entry into a field that I have cultivated for nearly half a century. Two qualities of his book are particularly noteworthy. One is the comprehensiveness with which Schmidt approaches the subject. The other is the practical orientation of the book, which makes it a book of methodology as well as theory.""
--Leland Ryken, author of Words of Delight: A Literary Introduction to the Bible

""This is a book that attends to students with a range of interests in the Bible, particularly students from religious backgrounds. Schmidt includes just the right amount of geographic, historical, and cultural information in a workbook format that encourages engagement with the literary tools provided. Schmidt is an enthusiastic and empowering teacher. Sections on biblical poetry, parables, and apocalypse are particularly valuable, while his pointers for considering context, constructing worthwhile questions, and identifying legitimate evidence will benefit any beginning literary analyst.""
--Margaret Christian, Penn State; author of Spenserian Allegory and Elizabethan Biblical Exegesis

""Making their way, pen in hand, through this exceptionally helpful, accessible guide, readers will discover that though the biblical writings remain complex, mysterious, and remote in time and culture, they are also richly readable and compelling. Thomas Schmidt provides interpretive tools and introduces literary terms while also assuring those who come from a faith tradition and those who don't that they can enjoy the journey and find in this monumental, much-abused book both the deep pleasure literature affords and an invitation to more substantive reflection on our own lives and times. It serves equally as an exhilarating introduction to or a reinvigorating review.""
--Marilyn McEntyre, UC Berkeley-UCSF Joint Medical Program; author of Caring for Words in a Culture of Lies




Thomas Schmidt (PhD, Cambridge University) has taught biblical studies, literature, and writing for thirty years in both religious and secular institutions. An award-winning teacher and author, his many publications include scholarly and popular nonfiction, novels, and poetry. His most recent Cascade Books publication, The Apostles after Acts: A Sequel (2013), offers a creative reconstruction of early Christianity just after the New Testament. Dr. Schmidt lives and teaches in Vermont.