Preface

THE PURPOSE of these studies is a simple one. It is hoped that they will help those who read them to understand and apply to their lives more of the great riches of wisdom and knowledge that the Scriptures contain. Such short studies cannot hope to cover every detail of each verse. They make an attempt to consider the main points of teaching in a passage. Where there are things difficult to understand, the Notes at the bottom of the sections try to deal with them a little more fully. The purpose is not just that these studies should feed the mind with the knowledge of Scripture and its teaching. Each study ends with prayer (or with a subject for meditation), because the reading of the Bible should always lead us to the response of repentance and faith and obedience, and we express this first in prayer and then in action in our daily lives. So that they may be used as daily readings, if so desired, the book has been divided into passages that are not too long for daily study and meditation. For those who, as students of the Word, want to go more deeply and to compare scripture with scripture, the suggestions for further study are added.

The Revised Standard Version is the translation which has been used, because of the greater simplicity of its English, and because of the increasing use of this version in places where this book may be read.