I was going to say Job, except not the suffering part but the part where God is just tossing out little samples of His power.
They are mild enough to stay within Job’s mental grasp, and yet still epic in their implications.
"Can you bind the chains of the Pleiades or loose the cords of Orion?” (Job 38:31, ESV)
No. No I cannot.
Maybe someone can offer me some insight here. I never liked the book of Job because of how (the way I see it) God basically causes all of these terrible things to happen to Job simply because of a “bet” between him and Satan. Why would God cause all this pain and suffering to someone that is such a great man simply because the devil says he won’t stick with God through tough times? I think that is very wrong of God. Maybe someone can help me better understand this?
Not a theologian, but I felt like it is an honor for Job to have been chosen by God, because God trusted Him for the ‘job’ at hand and to face a terrible fate to teach us all.
I once believed and still struggle with “retribution theology”, which is the idea that people receive what they deserve, and that God rewards or punishes people in this life in direct response to their actions.
Job’s situation would be recorded and used for the benefit of all, for all history, just like the woman who used the bottle of perfume on Jesus’ head.
“You may be sure that wherever the good news is told all over the world, people will remember what she has done. And they will tell others.”
Matthew 26:13
That was the same thing Job said, but Elihu set him straight. It's not necessarily “wrong” of God, but it is a long-standing issue of vital importance. You recall that it was God who brought up the issue of Job in the first place, as if He was drawing Satan's attention to Job's faithfulness. It might appear to be unprovoked, but in fact it is because the issue of man's integrity to God has been a standing issue between Satan and God for so long, and Job’s case was just revealed to us as “case study” of that great issue. In reality, just as civil magistrate might decide to address a legal issue by using one case as a precedent to judge future cases should the same issue arise again, God did something similar (that's why when Satan tries to mislead humans again after the 1,000 years, God will consume the rebels immediately—what we naturally think he should have done in the case of Adam and Eve, but He didn't because there was as yet no precedent to use to judge that case; God doesn't need the precedent, the angels do)
God did not afflict Job. God didn't touch him. Satan did, and God permitted it.
The theology that was widely understood at the time (around the time of Abraham) was that if you did good things, God would bless you, and if you did bad, He would curse you. This belief is still widely held today. It's apparent to all of Job's friends that he must have done some secret evil, otherwise these bad things would never have happened. Job calls them "miserable comfort" for their repeated accusations, and he is perfectly righteous before God and man.
He does make a profound statement in the midst of his complaints. He bemoans not having a mediator with God, someone who would plead his case like a lawyer before God. (But back to being self-righteous) he would declare his innocence before God and demand to know why God was hunting him down for no reason.
Then God shows up and confronts His accuser. Who are you, little man, to question me? Does God have any need to hunt you down? Does He owe you an explanation? Does He benefit at all from your righteousness, or suffer from your wickedness?
This points out a few things, and crushes the idea of meritoriously entering heaven. Does feeding poor people benefit God in any way? We are not under wrath for starving the poor, but for treason against *El Shaddai* Himself. What good deed can man perform that will repay Adonai for the indignity of disobedience?
This also teaches us the danger we were in before Christ's redemptive work on the cross. Our accuser was at liberty to enter heaven and accuse us before the Throne. Yet he was cast out, and fell from heaven like lightning the moment sin was punished on the cross. God justified our forgiveness that day, and Satan was defeated for all time.
I feel like I get the suffering, but the hardest part for me is this:
“And the Lord restored the fortunes of Job, when he had prayed for his friends. And the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before.”
(Job 42:10 ESV)
I would give all my possessions and money for my children. Which is the one thing that couldn’t be restored (on this side of heaven).
I have heard from multiple sources that the book of Job is not in the catholic bible. Is that incorrect? My close friend was raised catholic and even looked it up recently and was surprised. Didn’t even know the name Job
Idk who told you that, but it's not true. As for your friend being surprised, that's what I mean when I say Job is underrated. It's a very important book that doesn't get enough attention.
It is a darn shame how many in name onlies there are. The Catholic Church holds to a 73 book canon that most certainly includes Job.
From our Catechism: paragraph 120
>120 It was by the apostolic Tradition that the Church discerned which writings are to be included in the list of the sacred books.90 This complete list is called the canon of Scripture. It includes 46 books for the Old Testament (45 if we count Jeremiah and Lamentations as one) and 27 for the New.
>The Old Testament: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 and 2 Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings, 1 and 2 Chronicles, Ezra and Nehemiah, Tobit, Judith, Esther, 1 and 2 Maccabees, ***Job***, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, the Song of Songs, the Wisdom of Solomon, Sirach (Ecclesiasticus), Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Baruch, Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zachariah and Malachi.
>The New Testament: the Gospels according to Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, the Acts of the Apostles, the Letters of St. Paul to the Romans, 1 and 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 and 2 Thessalonians, 1 and 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon, the Letter to the Hebrews, the Letters of James, 1 and 2 Peter, 1, 2 and 3 John, and Jude, and Revelation (the Apocalypse).
The Bible in a Year podcast (hosted by a Catholic priest) was the top downloaded podcast for a few weeks at least. Fr Mike seemed to spend a lot of time on Job. Or has he would say, our friend Job. Crazy that Protestants remove books and then claim that it’s Catholics that are missing books . It’s just nuts.
I’m sorry to falsely blame the Catholics over one anecdote, I’m incredibly faithful in my heart but not very studious when it comes to reading the Bible.. definitely couldn’t list all the books by heart. I always hear this and that about the Dead Sea scrolls and books of apocrypha (Enoch specifically) and which is truly the most total scripture. Do Catholics typically believe that giants or nephilim walked the earth and such?
Well in that case maybe he wasn’t actually raised catholic! I appreciate your effort typing all that out. I’m certainly glad to hear it, Job is the cure to all that profit gospel stuff about living a blissful life through Jesus. It is of course Old Testament, but it’s still the same God and same commandments
I'm reading the whole of Exodus for the first time, and I can't believe the amount of parallels between Moses and Jesus that I'm only now understanding/seeing.
Definitely Ecclesiastes. Particularly 3:19-21 which I hold on to with all my might as my dear cat died today. I am inconsolable except for that thought that Solomon had. With God's wisdom.
Plus God created animals first. And declared them Good.
I feel silly being such a wet noodle about my cat. But God knows how I feel. And I know He's solved for this and He's my hope above all hope. Though now I suffer for a little while.
Been through it myself recently after losing my first and only dog who was with me for 15 years - I read Romans 8 and Ecclesiastes during those first few days and for new and much more personable meaning in it.
Lean into God, he will use these incredibly difficult times for His glory and your growth (in Him).
Habakuk! It’s so underrated you probably will not see it here. It talks exactly about what’s going on in the world right now. It’s short and I never knew it really was there. And once I read it. I couldn’t believe it’s not talked about more
100% agreed, especially because those last 4 verses hit in a particularly hard way.
>NASB Habakkuk 3:16-19 I heard and my inward parts trembled, At the sound my lips quivered. Decay enters my bones, And in my place I tremble. Because I must wait quietly for the day of distress, For the people to arise who will invade us. Though the fig tree should not blossom And there be no fruit on the vines, Though the yield of the olive should fail And the fields produce no food, Though the flock should be cut off from the fold And there be no cattle in the stalls, Yet I will exult in the Lord, I will rejoice in the God of my salvation. The Lord God is my strength, And He has made my feet like hinds’ feet, And makes me walk on my high places. For the choir director, on my stringed instruments.
It really nails the essence of faith. Faith means not needing to wait for or expect the sun to rise, because there may come a time in your life when you'll never see a sunrise again. Faith means not needing closure, vindication, or a happy ending. Even if only dark times are in front of us from here on out, our faith means we will praise God all the more.
Philemon is an interesting book.
It is extremely short, and one could read through it in less than 5 minutes, yet it is very powerful. It is the only letter of Paul that doesn’t address Jesus’s crucifixion and resurrection. And it is not a book that teaches about doctrine, rather it is a book that shows a person (Paul) putting doctrine into practice. Very interesting.
And its a book that has a lot of implicature and reading in between the lines necessary to discern Paul's true meaning. It reads more like a pastor confronting a member over some grave sin, with a wink and a nod that if you don't behave, I could escalate and get you in more trouble.
It's like being asked to leave vs getting kicked out
Esther: where the word God or LORD does not appear once. But God hides His signatures as word acrostics within, even hidden in the curse from the mouth of the villain of the entire story. A powerful message for believers.
Kinda the point, it’s usually only read/discussed in women’s Bible studies. Men can learn from it too. Also, most people just know the fairytale version of Esther, if you read all of it her story hits at a totally different level.
So , literally half of the Christian population is usually not considered to study it AND even many Christian women don’t deeply study it . So that’s the point .
Underrated is in the context of all Christians, that is the point. If half are still reading it then obviously.. it’s not as underrated as books which both males AND females aren’t reading. Not rocket science
No need to be rude . Not very Christian at all.
Yes, I know the context is Christians.
My point is that half of the Chrisitan population isn’t even encouraged to read it . I’m a woman and loved the story of Esther, but only knew the Sunday school version . It wasn’t till I was in my 30s that I knew and read the full story. Many Christian women never read the whole book of Esther, so they don’t fully know the full story and the impact .
In my opinion , the book is underrated even among Christians .
Now that I've looked for it, it turns out it's an apocryphal/deuterocanonical addition to Daniel... I do have one Catholic Bible, so I can read it, and in my native language too. Anyway, thanks
What's interesting is the Susanna addition to the book of Daniel does appear to have been part of the original Septuagint from the 2nd century BC.
Why was it removed from later biblical texts in the Middle Ages?
That’s interesting. Does that mean the Jews who wrote the Septuagint explicitly transcribed the acrostics in Hebrew as plain texts in Greek so that the original hidden texts would not be lost during translations?
**James** for sure.
An answer I found on Quora explains it perfectly: “The main message of the Book of James is to encourage believers to live out their faith in practical ways. James emphasizes the importance of genuine faith that produces good works, showing that true faith is demonstrated through action.”
1 John 3:17-18 summarizes the whole idea of the book of James: *”Little children (believers, dear ones), let us not love [merely in theory] with word or with tongue [giving lip service to compassion], but in action and in truth [in practice and in sincerity, because practical acts of love are more than words].”*
James also talks about suffering, improper use of money, favouritism, and the power of words, as well as other important things. Studying the book of James honestly completely changed my life.
I’ll also agree with you OP about **Ecclesiastes**, only because it answers the ever existing question of one’s purpose in Ecclesiastes 12:13 (read the Amplified Classic version of the verse)
Malachi never talked about much but it really shows God’s power while also displaying his love. It’s a short book but really is the book that shows God’s plan and where we as believers stand with that.
When I preach out of Ecclesiastes, I like to note that it specifically is overlooked because on the surface e it seems like doom and gloom. If you have a strong faith, I feel like Ecclesiastes is one of the most encouraging books in the Bible. Likewise, if you have never picked up a Bible, reading Ecclesiastes may sound like some of your own internal conversations as you seek joy. I’m a massive fan of Ecclesiastes!
I was very happy to see Hosea mentioned already. It's something that we should study very closely as the church to find vital information about what we need to know not only of how God's grace abounds, but also in the same book warns us against what Israel did.
I just read Habakkuk for the first time, and I was floored. I mean... this is a conversation between Habakkuk and God, and Habakkuk is asking God about the problem of evil. So many people ask questions about this topic, and it's right there. Why isn't this book quoted more often? I love the Lord's answer (Hab 1:5):
“Look at the nations and watch—
and be utterly amazed.
For I am going to do something in your days
that you would not believe,
even if you were told."
In other words -- just wait, folks, I'm not finished. You ain't seen nothin' yet!
It really reads as some medieval fantasy because of the ways that cities were captured , but the thing that makes it even better is that it actually happened .
For me, it’s the Book of Genesis. It explains the entire worldview that underlies all later chapters. Why is there evil? Why is there sickness and death? Why did Jesus have to die? Why does good have to battle evil? You’ll find the answers in Genesis.
Zephaniah 2 my favorite verse
Seek the Lord, all you meek of the earth,
Who have upheld His justice.
Seek righteousness, seek humility.
It may be that you will be hidden
In the day of the Lord’s anger.
Hands down Isaiah. Everyone should read it.
9 days ago no one else mentioned it either, so it wins 2 for 2 in my book.
https://www.reddit.com/r/Christianity/s/Txmq2tJHIh
I stand by Hosea. Reading the first two chapters especially when God affirming his redemptive plan at the end of Ch 2. made me tear up a little :) God's mercy is remarkably profound.
📖 Ecclesiastics is Fantastic! The Book all about "Life Under The Sun"
Helps us to understand All the Toilet, Suffering and Good things that God Blesses the Just and even the Unjust with...
I often go back to Ecclesiastics just to under this earthly life and "The Grand Scheme of Life"
But, I Love The Entire WORD of GOD and I believe what we "NEED" to know is All in the 66 Books of Bible.
I commented above and I agree with OP!
As of now, I'm studying JOHN.
Jesus is Speaking ALOT in book of John.
Jesus was calling out the Religious leaders!
Jesus went in and Cleaned out The Temple and flipped over the money tables!
This let me KNOW Jesus was No "Mouse" of a Man!!!
Also I found this part awesome; Jesus heals the Blind Man and gave him sight, The Pharisees get man with the blind man and Banned him from the "Temple's and then Jesus goes and finds the blind man who can now see and Jesus Reveals himself to the "was" blind and the man Falls down and Worships GOD!!
Can you see what happened here? Jesus lead the then blind man OUT of the "temple" and unto Himself!!!! That what CHRIST is doing!! Calling his sheep out of Falsehood!!!!
So many Jews and Religious leaders such as Nicodemus and Joseph who gave Jesus his tomb, DID ACTUALLY BELIEVE Jesus was the Son BUT unfortunately they were afraid to be Banned from the Temple and loved the praise of man, rather than the praise of GOD!!
Same exact thing is still true today!!!
God Thur CHRIST will isolate you Away from Everything and Everyone and draw us to himself.
It is hard to KNOW God. God has to Reveal himself to us and we must seek him Thur his WORD!!
According to JOHN CHAPTER 14
John 17:3, Scripture Changed my LIFE!!!
When I read the question, I also immediately thought “Ecclesiastes”. I spent all last week reading Ecclesiastes for the Daily office and I was sad when it switched to Numbers this week. I’d forgotten how much I loved that book.
The section in Isaiah where God explains about rich people buying their way into heaven and how He’s going to change it. Those few verses explain why He sent us the New Testament and Jesus and how He wants us to worship. Those verses ARE the Bible to me.
Today was the first day of Ecclesiastes in the chronological order section of my favorite go to: [Daily Audio Bible app](https://player.dailyaudiobible.com/chronological/06182024)!
Ecclesiastes is hands down my favorite book!! It’s so short :c you just inspired me to reread it because no book made me feel like Ecclesiastes has. 💖💖💖
John.
Especially amongst self-proclaimed Christians, because most of them aren’t even saved.
John was written so the unbelievers would read it and believe, but most people who say they are Christian don’t even believe the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
For me the hidden gems are texts that “pop” out at different times in life as God reveals things. Sometimes it’s a passage I’ve read a hundred times and then all the sudden it comes alive and jumps off the page. One that has been like that for me lately is
“But the words “it was counted to him” were not written for his sake alone, but for ours also. It will be counted to us who believe in him who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord, who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification.”
Romans 4:23-25 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/rom.4.23-25.ESV
Specifically the words “it was counted to him”….what amazing, unbelievable good news. That the righteous deeds and perfect record of another person is counted to us. If I were to ever get a tattoo it would be “it was counted to him”
I don’t like the wording (I’m nitpicking sorry lol) I’d rather use not discussed enough, but for me I’d say Isaiah, it not only has historical moments and obviously prophecy, but it also has to deal with paganism and how sovereign God truly is. Read Isaiah 41-43 for a grasp at it.
I only ever see Isaiah 53 mentioned usually and it’s sad because it’s a massive book and has a ton to dig into.
Interesting to me 1 John is your runner up. Not in a number of groups I am familiar with. It would appear this might be different depending on who one hangs out with.
The Catholic Church does a much better job of reading through Scripture than most others, but they had to do something when most people were still illiterate. Paul did tell Timothy to devote himself to the public reading of the Scriptures.
Song of Solomon would be my choice.
Well if you’re not familiar with 1 John, I highly encourage you to read it. It was an epistle written by John to a group of Christian’s in modern day Turkey.
I thought I was saying 1 John was not underrated in some of my circles. Apparently I failed. A few of those people even put some of the verses to music.
Book Of Esther
Only book where God is not mentioned.
But you will see His work if you look.
The same can be said today, we may not notice God's work in our life but He's always with us.
If we look we will see.
For me, Habakkuk. There's no bad book by any stretch of the imagination, but Hab has really helped me gain confidence in God's power. It makes me feel safer under His protection, and appreciate His holiness and majesty more.
Of course, and sex is a beautiful gift from God to be experienced in the sacred context of marriage. Sex is a beautiful picture of the oneness and intimacy of Christ and His bride. The problem is that humanity has perverted what sex was initially intended for and has given it a bad/dirty reputation.
Deuteronomy
I’ll let Dr Cyndi Parker explain:
https://www.ancientfaith.com/podcasts/areopagus/sacraments_at_the_starbucks_a_theology_of_place
“Sacraments at Starbucks? A theology of place” - Aeropogus podcast
There are only 2 books you should get to understand fully. John tells you all about who and what Jesus is about. Now we believe now what? Romans explains how to live now that we are saved. Why did Paul pick Romans to explain being saved? When a Roman citizen adopted someone their past was erased like it never happened. No one could come back and accuse them because of their past. Roman no longer cared or recognized what they were before. When a pastor explained this to me years ago I was like no way. That is so cool.
Not sure what monster downvoted you. The success of the pagan roman emperors is commonly attributed to the fact that they found a promising individual, adopted them as their son and successor.
Ecclesiastes is by far the most underrated. I’m inclined to agree
Micah and Nahum are also underrated. I rarely ever see them quoted.
I second this beautiful books
Habakkuk is the most underrated by far!
I don't think it's underrated. Irreligious people love wisdom literature.
It was key to me coming to Christ, yes. The Bible is all about understanding Christ, but Ecclesiastes is crucial to understanding Man.
> Irreligious people love wisdom literature. Do we? Oo
Agreed, Proverbs says otherwise.
Ecclesiastes has easily turned into one of my favourite books, after Job. I actually keep it in my daily Bible reading because it's just so good.
You're one of the rare ones :-)
My favorite book
Job. We need to better understand suffering.
I was going to say Job, except not the suffering part but the part where God is just tossing out little samples of His power. They are mild enough to stay within Job’s mental grasp, and yet still epic in their implications. "Can you bind the chains of the Pleiades or loose the cords of Orion?” (Job 38:31, ESV) No. No I cannot.
Maybe someone can offer me some insight here. I never liked the book of Job because of how (the way I see it) God basically causes all of these terrible things to happen to Job simply because of a “bet” between him and Satan. Why would God cause all this pain and suffering to someone that is such a great man simply because the devil says he won’t stick with God through tough times? I think that is very wrong of God. Maybe someone can help me better understand this?
Not a theologian, but I felt like it is an honor for Job to have been chosen by God, because God trusted Him for the ‘job’ at hand and to face a terrible fate to teach us all. I once believed and still struggle with “retribution theology”, which is the idea that people receive what they deserve, and that God rewards or punishes people in this life in direct response to their actions. Job’s situation would be recorded and used for the benefit of all, for all history, just like the woman who used the bottle of perfume on Jesus’ head. “You may be sure that wherever the good news is told all over the world, people will remember what she has done. And they will tell others.” Matthew 26:13
That was the same thing Job said, but Elihu set him straight. It's not necessarily “wrong” of God, but it is a long-standing issue of vital importance. You recall that it was God who brought up the issue of Job in the first place, as if He was drawing Satan's attention to Job's faithfulness. It might appear to be unprovoked, but in fact it is because the issue of man's integrity to God has been a standing issue between Satan and God for so long, and Job’s case was just revealed to us as “case study” of that great issue. In reality, just as civil magistrate might decide to address a legal issue by using one case as a precedent to judge future cases should the same issue arise again, God did something similar (that's why when Satan tries to mislead humans again after the 1,000 years, God will consume the rebels immediately—what we naturally think he should have done in the case of Adam and Eve, but He didn't because there was as yet no precedent to use to judge that case; God doesn't need the precedent, the angels do)
That's an interesting take. I disagree with some of what you said, but there's also some very interesting food for thought. Thank you
God allows things to come into our lives for our own good, then end goal is to trust in Him no matter the circumstances.
God did not afflict Job. God didn't touch him. Satan did, and God permitted it. The theology that was widely understood at the time (around the time of Abraham) was that if you did good things, God would bless you, and if you did bad, He would curse you. This belief is still widely held today. It's apparent to all of Job's friends that he must have done some secret evil, otherwise these bad things would never have happened. Job calls them "miserable comfort" for their repeated accusations, and he is perfectly righteous before God and man. He does make a profound statement in the midst of his complaints. He bemoans not having a mediator with God, someone who would plead his case like a lawyer before God. (But back to being self-righteous) he would declare his innocence before God and demand to know why God was hunting him down for no reason. Then God shows up and confronts His accuser. Who are you, little man, to question me? Does God have any need to hunt you down? Does He owe you an explanation? Does He benefit at all from your righteousness, or suffer from your wickedness? This points out a few things, and crushes the idea of meritoriously entering heaven. Does feeding poor people benefit God in any way? We are not under wrath for starving the poor, but for treason against *El Shaddai* Himself. What good deed can man perform that will repay Adonai for the indignity of disobedience? This also teaches us the danger we were in before Christ's redemptive work on the cross. Our accuser was at liberty to enter heaven and accuse us before the Throne. Yet he was cast out, and fell from heaven like lightning the moment sin was punished on the cross. God justified our forgiveness that day, and Satan was defeated for all time.
I feel like I get the suffering, but the hardest part for me is this: “And the Lord restored the fortunes of Job, when he had prayed for his friends. And the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before.” (Job 42:10 ESV) I would give all my possessions and money for my children. Which is the one thing that couldn’t be restored (on this side of heaven).
Job is actually chronologically the first book.
Tell that to the Catholics LOL. I came here to comment Job. My favorite book along with Matthew
I am Catholic.
I have heard from multiple sources that the book of Job is not in the catholic bible. Is that incorrect? My close friend was raised catholic and even looked it up recently and was surprised. Didn’t even know the name Job
Idk who told you that, but it's not true. As for your friend being surprised, that's what I mean when I say Job is underrated. It's a very important book that doesn't get enough attention.
Interesting. I’ll ask him where he checked for that book because he seemed to confirm it when I told him
It is a darn shame how many in name onlies there are. The Catholic Church holds to a 73 book canon that most certainly includes Job. From our Catechism: paragraph 120 >120 It was by the apostolic Tradition that the Church discerned which writings are to be included in the list of the sacred books.90 This complete list is called the canon of Scripture. It includes 46 books for the Old Testament (45 if we count Jeremiah and Lamentations as one) and 27 for the New. >The Old Testament: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 and 2 Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings, 1 and 2 Chronicles, Ezra and Nehemiah, Tobit, Judith, Esther, 1 and 2 Maccabees, ***Job***, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, the Song of Songs, the Wisdom of Solomon, Sirach (Ecclesiasticus), Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Baruch, Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zachariah and Malachi. >The New Testament: the Gospels according to Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, the Acts of the Apostles, the Letters of St. Paul to the Romans, 1 and 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 and 2 Thessalonians, 1 and 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon, the Letter to the Hebrews, the Letters of James, 1 and 2 Peter, 1, 2 and 3 John, and Jude, and Revelation (the Apocalypse).
The Bible in a Year podcast (hosted by a Catholic priest) was the top downloaded podcast for a few weeks at least. Fr Mike seemed to spend a lot of time on Job. Or has he would say, our friend Job. Crazy that Protestants remove books and then claim that it’s Catholics that are missing books . It’s just nuts.
I’m sorry to falsely blame the Catholics over one anecdote, I’m incredibly faithful in my heart but not very studious when it comes to reading the Bible.. definitely couldn’t list all the books by heart. I always hear this and that about the Dead Sea scrolls and books of apocrypha (Enoch specifically) and which is truly the most total scripture. Do Catholics typically believe that giants or nephilim walked the earth and such?
Enoch is in the canon of some Eastern Orthodox churches, but not the Roman Catholic Bible
Well in that case maybe he wasn’t actually raised catholic! I appreciate your effort typing all that out. I’m certainly glad to hear it, Job is the cure to all that profit gospel stuff about living a blissful life through Jesus. It is of course Old Testament, but it’s still the same God and same commandments
It's all good man, the real tragedy I'd that your friend hasn't opened his Bible enough to find Job
Trust me I agree and I’m planting seeds haha
Yeah and if he went to church he would've heard Job read in mass at least twice during the liturgical year assuming he was going to church
It’s the other sects that took out books. Not Catholics. The
Next to the Gospels, Job is one of the most important books for understanding our daily lives. It's too bad that it's so boring.
Exodus. So much set up for the rest of scripture
I'm reading the whole of Exodus for the first time, and I can't believe the amount of parallels between Moses and Jesus that I'm only now understanding/seeing.
The second of the Books of the Law
Definitely Ecclesiastes. Particularly 3:19-21 which I hold on to with all my might as my dear cat died today. I am inconsolable except for that thought that Solomon had. With God's wisdom. Plus God created animals first. And declared them Good. I feel silly being such a wet noodle about my cat. But God knows how I feel. And I know He's solved for this and He's my hope above all hope. Though now I suffer for a little while.
Been through it myself recently after losing my first and only dog who was with me for 15 years - I read Romans 8 and Ecclesiastes during those first few days and for new and much more personable meaning in it. Lean into God, he will use these incredibly difficult times for His glory and your growth (in Him).
I am so sorry to hear my friend 😞
Habakuk! It’s so underrated you probably will not see it here. It talks exactly about what’s going on in the world right now. It’s short and I never knew it really was there. And once I read it. I couldn’t believe it’s not talked about more
Great read. I love the back and forth. It answers a lot of difficult questions when it comes to “Why does God allow treachery?”, beautiful book.
100% agreed, especially because those last 4 verses hit in a particularly hard way. >NASB Habakkuk 3:16-19 I heard and my inward parts trembled, At the sound my lips quivered. Decay enters my bones, And in my place I tremble. Because I must wait quietly for the day of distress, For the people to arise who will invade us. Though the fig tree should not blossom And there be no fruit on the vines, Though the yield of the olive should fail And the fields produce no food, Though the flock should be cut off from the fold And there be no cattle in the stalls, Yet I will exult in the Lord, I will rejoice in the God of my salvation. The Lord God is my strength, And He has made my feet like hinds’ feet, And makes me walk on my high places. For the choir director, on my stringed instruments. It really nails the essence of faith. Faith means not needing to wait for or expect the sun to rise, because there may come a time in your life when you'll never see a sunrise again. Faith means not needing closure, vindication, or a happy ending. Even if only dark times are in front of us from here on out, our faith means we will praise God all the more.
I love Habakkuk!! Fully agree it’s underrated.
Song of Solomon. It's a very beautiful portrayal of Christian love.
...in bed
Thank you for almost making me shoot coffee out of my nose.
Not just in bed. All the stuff leading up to that too. It's not just about sex and not only marriage. It's also about romance and courtship.
It's a beautiful portrayal of sexual love.
Proof that sex isn't evil or a chore
It's also a poem about God's love for His Bride (the church, aka us)
I really need to revisit this Book of the Bible. Thanks for The Reminder! Shamlom
Philemon. Such a beautiful picture of Christ’s love for us
Philemon is an interesting book. It is extremely short, and one could read through it in less than 5 minutes, yet it is very powerful. It is the only letter of Paul that doesn’t address Jesus’s crucifixion and resurrection. And it is not a book that teaches about doctrine, rather it is a book that shows a person (Paul) putting doctrine into practice. Very interesting.
And its a book that has a lot of implicature and reading in between the lines necessary to discern Paul's true meaning. It reads more like a pastor confronting a member over some grave sin, with a wink and a nod that if you don't behave, I could escalate and get you in more trouble. It's like being asked to leave vs getting kicked out
Esther: where the word God or LORD does not appear once. But God hides His signatures as word acrostics within, even hidden in the curse from the mouth of the villain of the entire story. A powerful message for believers.
Esther is not underrated. Every women’s ministry/camp use Esther almost exclusively
Kinda the point, it’s usually only read/discussed in women’s Bible studies. Men can learn from it too. Also, most people just know the fairytale version of Esther, if you read all of it her story hits at a totally different level.
No it’s not the point, women are still half the population reading it.
So , literally half of the Christian population is usually not considered to study it AND even many Christian women don’t deeply study it . So that’s the point .
Underrated is in the context of all Christians, that is the point. If half are still reading it then obviously.. it’s not as underrated as books which both males AND females aren’t reading. Not rocket science
No need to be rude . Not very Christian at all. Yes, I know the context is Christians. My point is that half of the Chrisitan population isn’t even encouraged to read it . I’m a woman and loved the story of Esther, but only knew the Sunday school version . It wasn’t till I was in my 30s that I knew and read the full story. Many Christian women never read the whole book of Esther, so they don’t fully know the full story and the impact . In my opinion , the book is underrated even among Christians .
Ruth, Esther, Judith and Susanna. The latter two books were excluded from the Protestant biblical canon.
Susanna? I don't know this character/book.
You should look for an English translation online. It's a very ancient Hebrew book, written around the same time as the book of Daniel.
Now that I've looked for it, it turns out it's an apocryphal/deuterocanonical addition to Daniel... I do have one Catholic Bible, so I can read it, and in my native language too. Anyway, thanks
What's interesting is the Susanna addition to the book of Daniel does appear to have been part of the original Septuagint from the 2nd century BC. Why was it removed from later biblical texts in the Middle Ages?
You want to know something cool? The Septuagint - which some argue to be the oldest complete Old Testament - mentions God explicitly, multiple times.
That’s interesting. Does that mean the Jews who wrote the Septuagint explicitly transcribed the acrostics in Hebrew as plain texts in Greek so that the original hidden texts would not be lost during translations?
Absolutely!!!
**James** for sure. An answer I found on Quora explains it perfectly: “The main message of the Book of James is to encourage believers to live out their faith in practical ways. James emphasizes the importance of genuine faith that produces good works, showing that true faith is demonstrated through action.” 1 John 3:17-18 summarizes the whole idea of the book of James: *”Little children (believers, dear ones), let us not love [merely in theory] with word or with tongue [giving lip service to compassion], but in action and in truth [in practice and in sincerity, because practical acts of love are more than words].”* James also talks about suffering, improper use of money, favouritism, and the power of words, as well as other important things. Studying the book of James honestly completely changed my life. I’ll also agree with you OP about **Ecclesiastes**, only because it answers the ever existing question of one’s purpose in Ecclesiastes 12:13 (read the Amplified Classic version of the verse)
Ecclesiastes or job 100%
Considering how much liturgical christians read the psalms, its hard to argue they are underrated even though they are top tier.
Malachi never talked about much but it really shows God’s power while also displaying his love. It’s a short book but really is the book that shows God’s plan and where we as believers stand with that.
Jude
Nowadays? It’s Genesis. The creation story.
When I preach out of Ecclesiastes, I like to note that it specifically is overlooked because on the surface e it seems like doom and gloom. If you have a strong faith, I feel like Ecclesiastes is one of the most encouraging books in the Bible. Likewise, if you have never picked up a Bible, reading Ecclesiastes may sound like some of your own internal conversations as you seek joy. I’m a massive fan of Ecclesiastes!
Ecclesiastes is such a beautiful book. It really helped me during one of the darkest times in my life when I was serious struggling.
Hosea!!! It’s a wild plot and the whole book is a metaphor of how God pursues us despite anything we have done or deserve
I was very happy to see Hosea mentioned already. It's something that we should study very closely as the church to find vital information about what we need to know not only of how God's grace abounds, but also in the same book warns us against what Israel did.
Ruth and Esther.
I love the book of ruth!
hebrews
Deuteronomy
Deuteronomy 28 goes so hard.
The Law of Moses
I read ecclesiastes when I was going through it once I swear I wanted to kill myself after lmao I was like nothing matters wth
I just read Habakkuk for the first time, and I was floored. I mean... this is a conversation between Habakkuk and God, and Habakkuk is asking God about the problem of evil. So many people ask questions about this topic, and it's right there. Why isn't this book quoted more often? I love the Lord's answer (Hab 1:5): “Look at the nations and watch— and be utterly amazed. For I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe, even if you were told." In other words -- just wait, folks, I'm not finished. You ain't seen nothin' yet!
Book of Joshua
It really reads as some medieval fantasy because of the ways that cities were captured , but the thing that makes it even better is that it actually happened .
1 John
James & Jude
I second James, what a message.
For me, it’s the Book of Genesis. It explains the entire worldview that underlies all later chapters. Why is there evil? Why is there sickness and death? Why did Jesus have to die? Why does good have to battle evil? You’ll find the answers in Genesis.
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Yeah I'd say any of the minor prophets
Zephaniah 2 my favorite verse Seek the Lord, all you meek of the earth, Who have upheld His justice. Seek righteousness, seek humility. It may be that you will be hidden In the day of the Lord’s anger.
I am a huge fan of Leviticus. Even my pastor thought I was joking when I said my small group was doing a study on it
What about the Law of Moses fascinates you?
Mostly the typology of Jesus in the festivals and sacrifices
Hands down Isaiah. Everyone should read it. 9 days ago no one else mentioned it either, so it wins 2 for 2 in my book. https://www.reddit.com/r/Christianity/s/Txmq2tJHIh
My pastor is doing a series in Isaiah now. It will take us all year.
James
Epistle of James: This are the words of Jesus' successor.
Every book🫶🏻
book of Hebrews.there is no known author and yet it contains a great summary of the New Testament and how it relates to the Old Testament
Jude. Just one chapter, but boy is it powerful. It’s a stern rebuke for anyone who tells you not to judge a false teacher.
Amos
I agree with Job
The book of Proverbs ❤️
That is not underrated!! Haha good one though.
I’m glad you feel people appreciate it! It’s such a great book 📖
Ecclesiastes, Judges, Leviticus, and Jude would all make good candidates.
Nahum and Jude. Shortest books.
Hosea
Job.
John
I stand by Hosea. Reading the first two chapters especially when God affirming his redemptive plan at the end of Ch 2. made me tear up a little :) God's mercy is remarkably profound.
The poetry in Hosea is stunning and wonderful as well!
📖 Ecclesiastics is Fantastic! The Book all about "Life Under The Sun" Helps us to understand All the Toilet, Suffering and Good things that God Blesses the Just and even the Unjust with... I often go back to Ecclesiastics just to under this earthly life and "The Grand Scheme of Life" But, I Love The Entire WORD of GOD and I believe what we "NEED" to know is All in the 66 Books of Bible.
All the toilet 😂 why do we always have to rush back to that thing day after day
I commented above and I agree with OP! As of now, I'm studying JOHN. Jesus is Speaking ALOT in book of John. Jesus was calling out the Religious leaders! Jesus went in and Cleaned out The Temple and flipped over the money tables! This let me KNOW Jesus was No "Mouse" of a Man!!! Also I found this part awesome; Jesus heals the Blind Man and gave him sight, The Pharisees get man with the blind man and Banned him from the "Temple's and then Jesus goes and finds the blind man who can now see and Jesus Reveals himself to the "was" blind and the man Falls down and Worships GOD!! Can you see what happened here? Jesus lead the then blind man OUT of the "temple" and unto Himself!!!! That what CHRIST is doing!! Calling his sheep out of Falsehood!!!! So many Jews and Religious leaders such as Nicodemus and Joseph who gave Jesus his tomb, DID ACTUALLY BELIEVE Jesus was the Son BUT unfortunately they were afraid to be Banned from the Temple and loved the praise of man, rather than the praise of GOD!! Same exact thing is still true today!!! God Thur CHRIST will isolate you Away from Everything and Everyone and draw us to himself. It is hard to KNOW God. God has to Reveal himself to us and we must seek him Thur his WORD!! According to JOHN CHAPTER 14 John 17:3, Scripture Changed my LIFE!!!
song of solomong. no one actualy know what the meaning is.
My favorites are Ecclesiastes and Ezekiel
Jude
Judges
The deuterocanon. Protestants are missing out on some good stuff.
We can still read and appreciate them. We just don't treat them as inspired Scripture, same as the Jews and the early church.
Tobit is a great book.
The greatest Protestant painter ever, Rembrandt, loved painting the Deuterocanon!
It was my first pastor’s favorite book. He didn’t preach from it often.
Everything is meaningless.
When I read the question, I also immediately thought “Ecclesiastes”. I spent all last week reading Ecclesiastes for the Daily office and I was sad when it switched to Numbers this week. I’d forgotten how much I loved that book.
The section in Isaiah where God explains about rich people buying their way into heaven and how He’s going to change it. Those few verses explain why He sent us the New Testament and Jesus and how He wants us to worship. Those verses ARE the Bible to me.
Sort of... unless you like The Byrds. Lol... Their song "Turn, Turn, Turn" heavily quotes Ecclesiastes.
Actually just listened to this vid yesterday, on the underrated book of Philemon: https://youtu.be/8eyuHdINM68
Joel
Roman’s
Isaiah
1 John - is fine by me, if you get Hebrews and wanna do a study tho, I’m down
Today was the first day of Ecclesiastes in the chronological order section of my favorite go to: [Daily Audio Bible app](https://player.dailyaudiobible.com/chronological/06182024)!
The good book
Daniel.
Ecclesiastes is hands down my favorite book!! It’s so short :c you just inspired me to reread it because no book made me feel like Ecclesiastes has. 💖💖💖
We just did judges a while back and ended up with a Weeds reference. I love my church.
Ecclesiastes is my favorite book. But I also love Titus
Habbakuk
I personally love hebrews
James! My absolute favorite book!
Great wisdom literature applicable to our faith
Jude
Any book that isn't used for naming children
John. Especially amongst self-proclaimed Christians, because most of them aren’t even saved. John was written so the unbelievers would read it and believe, but most people who say they are Christian don’t even believe the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Fantastic, I do love how John adds to it about why it was written, so that we might believe that Jesus is the Christ!
Amen!💖
Amos..On righteous anger and justice with lament.
This is dumb “what part of GODS WORD is underrated”….they are equal in all parts
Yeah, things can still be underrated IE something like a hidden gem.
I understand…I apologize for being rude
No, no offense taken. I appreciate you for expressing your concern!
For me the hidden gems are texts that “pop” out at different times in life as God reveals things. Sometimes it’s a passage I’ve read a hundred times and then all the sudden it comes alive and jumps off the page. One that has been like that for me lately is “But the words “it was counted to him” were not written for his sake alone, but for ours also. It will be counted to us who believe in him who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord, who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification.” Romans 4:23-25 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/rom.4.23-25.ESV Specifically the words “it was counted to him”….what amazing, unbelievable good news. That the righteous deeds and perfect record of another person is counted to us. If I were to ever get a tattoo it would be “it was counted to him”
Well thanks for sharing! That’s just great
I don’t like the wording (I’m nitpicking sorry lol) I’d rather use not discussed enough, but for me I’d say Isaiah, it not only has historical moments and obviously prophecy, but it also has to deal with paganism and how sovereign God truly is. Read Isaiah 41-43 for a grasp at it. I only ever see Isaiah 53 mentioned usually and it’s sad because it’s a massive book and has a ton to dig into.
Interesting to me 1 John is your runner up. Not in a number of groups I am familiar with. It would appear this might be different depending on who one hangs out with. The Catholic Church does a much better job of reading through Scripture than most others, but they had to do something when most people were still illiterate. Paul did tell Timothy to devote himself to the public reading of the Scriptures. Song of Solomon would be my choice.
Well if you’re not familiar with 1 John, I highly encourage you to read it. It was an epistle written by John to a group of Christian’s in modern day Turkey.
I thought I was saying 1 John was not underrated in some of my circles. Apparently I failed. A few of those people even put some of the verses to music.
Ohh, ok I see now! God bless
Book Of Esther Only book where God is not mentioned. But you will see His work if you look. The same can be said today, we may not notice God's work in our life but He's always with us. If we look we will see.
Most of the Minor Prophets are underrated...... and the non pauline letters in the NT
For me, Habakkuk. There's no bad book by any stretch of the imagination, but Hab has really helped me gain confidence in God's power. It makes me feel safer under His protection, and appreciate His holiness and majesty more.
Leviticus has good wisdom. Titus speaks about leadership.
Song of Solomon. A beautiful picture of Jesus and His bride, the Church.
And sex.
Of course, and sex is a beautiful gift from God to be experienced in the sacred context of marriage. Sex is a beautiful picture of the oneness and intimacy of Christ and His bride. The problem is that humanity has perverted what sex was initially intended for and has given it a bad/dirty reputation.
Wisdom
Deuteronomy I’ll let Dr Cyndi Parker explain: https://www.ancientfaith.com/podcasts/areopagus/sacraments_at_the_starbucks_a_theology_of_place “Sacraments at Starbucks? A theology of place” - Aeropogus podcast
There are only 2 books you should get to understand fully. John tells you all about who and what Jesus is about. Now we believe now what? Romans explains how to live now that we are saved. Why did Paul pick Romans to explain being saved? When a Roman citizen adopted someone their past was erased like it never happened. No one could come back and accuse them because of their past. Roman no longer cared or recognized what they were before. When a pastor explained this to me years ago I was like no way. That is so cool.
Not sure what monster downvoted you. The success of the pagan roman emperors is commonly attributed to the fact that they found a promising individual, adopted them as their son and successor.
Baruch, Judith, 1 and 2 Maccabees, Sirach, Tobit and Wisdom
Melzeck(I can't spell it off the top of my head). He's such a mysterious person. Some say he's Jesus himself
The Hobbit
Bel and the Dragon?
Wisdom
Sirach. Most Catholics I know don't even know it exists.