Windows Into The Bible
Are you ever confused when you read the Bible? Do you feel like you’re missing out on what the Bible is saying? Like something is going on just below the surface that alludes you? The Bible is the product of its world—its time, its place, and its culture. Our confusion and frustration come when we try to read the Bible first within our world, not its world. Understanding the words of the Bible requires us to enter the world of the Bible. It requires us to learn first to ask ancient questions of the Bible, then we understand it to address our modern lives and world.
This reality was captured in a saying attributed to Saint Jerome, “Five gospels record the life of Jesus. Four you find in books and the one you will find in the land they call holy. Read the fifth gospel and the world of the four will open to you.” Entering the world of the Bible enables us to understand the words of the Bible.
This course introduces you to the world of the Bible, specifically four windows to gaze into the world of the Bible that will help you understand the Bible. These Windows Into the Bible are spatial, historical, cultural, and spiritual. Join your instructor Marc Turnage as each course provides a case study learning how to read the Bible through one of the windows into its world.
Your Instructor
Marc Turnage holds an MA in Ancient Judaism and the Origins of Christianity from Jerusalem University College. He is currently finishing his PhD in the Land of Israel Studies Department at Bar Ilan University located in Ramat Gan, Israel, under the supervision of Professor Esther Eshel. Marc has taught graduate and undergraduate students at several universities in the United States and abroad.
Marc moved to Israel to study because he felt that the issues of spatial, historical, cultural, and spiritual settings played a vital role in how we read the Bible. While studying in Israel, he fell in love with the lands of the Bible. He has been guiding groups through Israel, Jordan, Egypt, Turkey, Greece, and Italy for over twenty years. Marc is a highly sought-after guide and teacher and routinely trains and lectures local tour guides about guiding Christian groups. He is passionate about leading biblical tours that deliver the very finest experience and helping people understand how to read the Bible.
Marc has published widely for both academic and popular audiences. His most recent book, Windows Into the Bible, was named by Outreach Magazine one of its top 100 Christian living resources. Marc is a widely sought-after speaker, and a gifted teacher. He resides in Springfield, MO with his family.