The King in His Beauty: A Biblical Theology of the Old and New Testaments
by Thomas R. Schreiner
(2013, Baker Publishing Group)
https://www.amazon.com/King-His-Beauty-Biblical-Testaments/dp/0801039398
What it is: A walk through the entire Bible, book by book, with an emphasis on the theology of the Bible and a focus on how each book points toward Jesus.
What I love: This book outlines the unity of the Bible from down in the weeds better than all others I've read. It traces themes beautifully. It highlights context and historical situations well without getting bogged own in them. Schreiner also does a great job cross referencing for you as he holds your hand into connecting dots. I love reading this author and own just about everything he has published.
Any limitations?: This book is written with a fairly scholarly verbiage. It is not light reading and isn't recommended if you have never read the Bible before. This book also has limited focus on 'application' or 'devotionals' so if you're looking for devotional reading or bible study questions you might want to check out the next Author on the list.
About the Author: Thomas Schreiner (PhD, Fuller Theological Seminary) is a professor at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.
Promises Made: The Message of the Old Testament / Promises Kept: The Message of the New Testament
by Mark Dever
(2006, Crossway Publishing)
https://www.amazon.com/Message-Old-Testament-Promises-Made/dp/1581347170/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=promises+made&qid=1592358240&s=books&sr=1-2
What it is: Ok, so technically it's two books. The link is only to the Old Testament book, but I recommend both. It is a Book by Book walk through the entire Old Testament
What I love: Dever does a great job of displaying the unity of the entire Bible in easy to read chapters. In Promises Made, he shows how everything in the Old Testament points toward Jesus as the fulfillment of God's promises. The format is much lighter (less academic) than Schreiner's book. It has an eye toward application and is ideally geared for personal Bible study reflections (even having an example prayer and reflection questions at the end of each chapter.
Any limitations?: Because of the format it isn't super in the weeds. If you are looking for heavy cross references or academic dialog, you won't find it here.
NOTE: While covering the Old Testament, I found that having both The King in His Beauty & Promises Made open really worked out well.
About the Author: Mark Dever (PhD, Cambridge University) is the senior pastor of Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington, DC
How to Read the Bible Book by Book
by Gordon D. Fee & Douglas Stuart
(2002 Zondervan Publishing Group)
https://www.amazon.com/How-Read-Bible-Book-Guided/dp/0310518083/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2EI7FZ98D5UPD&dchild=1&keywords=how+to+read+the+bible+book+by+book&qid=1592359051&s=books&sprefix=how+to+read+the+%2Cstripbooks%2C145&sr=1-1
What it is: An concise overview of each book of the Bible in a small paperback book.
What I love: It's concise. If you're looking for a quick guide on how to approach reading each book of the Bible, this is a very good option. It gives an organized approach to each book by providing 'orienting data', an 'overview' of each book, and 'specific advice for reading' each book. If you are looking for a 'pocket style quick reference guide' you should look into this book.
Any limitations?: It is meant to be 'a guided tour' not a week long stay at each stop, so if you want lots of content, study questions, and applications I would recommend one of the larger books above.
About the Author: Gordon D. Fee (PhD, University of Southern California) & Douglas Stuart (PhD, Harvard University) have both served as Professors of New and Old Testament studies respectively.
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