The mysteries of Scripture

This phrase appears more than 70 times in Scripture

The Bible, the Tanakh, the Holy Scriptures, the Word of God: there are many names for this millennial text, but do they all refer to the same thing? Under the name ‘Bible’ —from the Greek biblia, ‘books’— we find different texts, some longer than others, connected to different faiths and traditions. What makes up the Bible? How does it vary from tradition to tradition? What was its original language? Keep on reading to find out the answer to these questions and other interesting facts about this sacred text.

While many people mistakenly refer to the Torah as the "Jewish Bible", it actually includes only the first five books of Moses—what, in Christian tradition, is sometimes called the Pentateuch. The complete collection of sacred Jewish texts is actually called Tanakh, an acronym of the sections included: Torah —the narrations and law written in the books of Moses—, Nevi’im —the Prophets—, and Ketuvim —writings of wisdom and poetic literature.

Are the Jewish Tanakh and the Christian Old Testament the same text? Not quite. Most of the text coincides, but is organized in a different way and translated from different sources. Additionally, books that are not part of the Jewish tradition—for example, Tobit or Judith—are not included in all Christian Bibles.

You might be surprised to learn that not all Christians read the same Bible. While the New Testament is the same, there are differences in what books are included in the Old Testament. Seven books—Tobit, Judith, Wisdom, Sirach, Baruch, and 1 & 2 Maccabees, plus some sections in Daniel and Esther— are considered part of the canon by Catholics and Orthodox traditions, but are not accepted by denominations of Protestant tradition.

Why are these books questioned? They were written at a later time than the rest of the Old Testament, around the 3rd century BCE, and were often only accessible through Greek translations. While Catholics and Orthodox have traditionally accepted them, the Protestant denominations do not, on account of their not being accepted as canonical by the Jewish tradition. However, these texts are often read as historical documents, even if they are not considered to be inspired by God.

The Bible was written across many centuries in different places, so the original text is not in a single language. The majority of the Tanakh and the Old Testament was originally written in Biblical Hebrew (which is different, although related, from Modern Hebrew), while some sections were written in Aramaic.

What about the New Testament? While most writers spoke Aramaic, the text is written in Koine Greek, a colloquial version of Greek used as a common tongue at the time. However, the text still includes words and phrases in Hebrew and Aramaic, such as amen, Abba, or hosanna.

As a text composed by many people across many centuries, the Bible was not penned in a single location, but across three different continents and several countries. The majority of the Tanakh/Old Testament was written in the ancient kingdoms of Israel and Judah, with some parts written during the Israelite exile in Babylon (modern-day Iraq). Additionally, some traditions believe that the books of Moses were written in modern-day Egypt.

What about the New Testament? Though closer in time, its sections were written in places all around the Mediterranean, mainly in ancient Judea, Greece, Macedonia, modern-day Turkey, and Rome.

The Bible is an anthology, written and compiled over several centuries and under different circumstances. As such, it includes a variety of known literary genres, such as historical narratives —for example, Genesis or Acts—, compendiums of law —Leviticus or Deuteronomy—, wisdom literature —Proverbs—, poetry —Psalms or Song of Solomon—, prophetic and apocalyptic texts —Isaiah, Jeremiah, or Revelations—, and letters —Romans or Corinthians.

In addition to all these genres, already established when the sections of the Bible were written, some books include the first recorded examples of a literary genre, such as the Gospels —a unique mix of narrative, biography, and theology—, or the Parables, which, unlike fables, convey complex moral and religious teachings alongside their interpretation.

All Bibles start in the same moment, the beginning of time, but not all Bibles follow the same chronology. The Tanakh narrates the story of the Israelites up until the construction of the Second Temple (6th century BCE), and the New Testament picks the story up around the years 5 to 1 BCE. What happened in the meantime? It depends on who you ask.

In the Protestant traditions, that gap is known as the "Silent Years", on account of the lack of inspired texts and prophets. In the Catholic and Orthodox traditions, the gap is shortened by Maccabees 1 and 2, which narrate the uprising against the Seleucid Empire in the 2nd Century BCE. There is, however, another biblical gap in the New Testament, known as the "Lost Years", that goes from the last mention of Jesus as a child —his visit to the Temple at 12 years old— to his baptism in the River Jordan at 30 years old.

If someone were to ask how many commandments are in the Bible, many would quickly respond that there are 10. However, not all traditions would accept this as a correct answer. The Jewish tradition recognizes 613 divine commandments or mitzvot. The first 10, listed twice in the Torah, are a list of fundamental moral and theological principles, while the remaining 603 regulate different aspects of life, such as society, rituals, ethics, or justice.

Do all Christian traditions follow the same commandments? Yes and no. The text of the Old Testament describes the ten commandments, but does not enumerate them, so each tradition has its own way of assigning numbers to each commandment, which can lead to confusion.

The biblical text is traditionally divided into books, which are divided into verses, but these divisions vary between the Tanakh and the Christian Bibles. The Tanakh contains 24 books divided into 3 sections—Torah, Nevi’im, and Ketuvim. The longest book is Tehillim or Psalms, while the shortest is the book of Obadiah.

In the Christian tradition, the longest book is Jeremiah, while the shortest book is John 3, with only 13 verses. The longest verse (in English) is Esther 8:9 with more than 70 words, while the shortest is John 11:35, with just two.

Have you ever wondered why there are many different depictions of Jesus around the world, even when they are most likely historically incorrect? The truth is, we can only guess what he looked like, based on the historical time and the geographical location, but we don’t have any physical description of him.

The four Gospels give us all sorts of information about Jesus, from his genealogy to his life, his family, his teachings, and his mission, but he is never described in terms of appearance. Even when different people talk about him, he is described based on his place of origin, his lineage, or his actions.

If you have ever read any part of the Bible, you might have noticed that many phrases are repeated. This is not a coincidence, but a deliberate literary device, intended to emphasize certain ideas and help to retain their message.

What is the most repeated phrase in the Bible? Both the Tanakh and the Christian Bibles coincide here, with the phrase "Do not fear" —and similar variants such as "Fear not" or "Be not afraid"— repeated more than 70 times in the Tanakh, and more than a hundred times in the Christian Bible.

Names carry a deep meaning in the Bible, often related to historical circumstances, spiritual characteristics, or prophetic messages. In fact, many passages involve the renaming of individuals to reflect a newfound mission or experience, such as God renaming Abram (‘exalted father’) as Abraham (‘father of a multitude’), or Jesus renaming Simon as Peter (in Aramaic, Kepha, "stone") to mean he would be the rock of early Christianity.

Among these names, one stands out due to its length and its ominous message. In the book of Isaiah, God instructs the prophet Isaiah to name his second child Mahershalalhashbaz, a name that means ‘swift are the spoils, speedy is the plunder’, and is interpreted as prophecising the upcoming invasion of Israel by the Assyrian empire. Fun fact: if this name rings a bell for you, it might be due to the actor Mahershala Ali, whose real name is Mahershalalhashbaz Gilmore.

ORGANIZED HOME, ORGANIZED MIND

The Ultimate Guide To Home Organization: Tips For A Clutter-Free Home

Image: Douglas Sheppard

We all know keeping a house organized takes time, energy, and even money at times. But none of those are enough when you don’t know how to get the organization ball rolling.

Organization, whether it is for a house or personal, can be a powerful tool to gain control over every aspect of your life. But that is not the only benefit of having an organized home, by learning some techniques, you can maximize your spaces and make them functional to your lifestyle.

Read on and see which of these tips you can put into practice today!

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The first step to becoming an organization expert is to declutter. Decluttering means removing everything you don’t need or use, or everything that is broken or is no longer functional to you or your family.

To declutter successfully you have to be honest with yourself about those things you keep out of attachment, for example. Assess your home, and everything you own, and get rid of everything that no longer serves you any purpose to create new free space.

Consider selling or donating the things you don’t use but keep in a good state!

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After assessing your space and removing everything you don’t use or need, start creating zones in your home. This will allow you to allocate specific areas for different activities or moments of your everyday life. For example, if you work from home, consider having a separate working space, and set up a desk with everything you need.

Establishing clear zones will make it easier to keep track of your belongings and create a more functional living space. Not to mention having specific zones for each activity will strengthen your routine and habits.

Image: Jarek Ceborski

After you have created different zones, assign specific homes for each item. For example, you may place a container for the keys by the main door; or a rack for the shoes you use frequently. Having a designated area and a specific home for each of your belongings will help you keep your home organized at all times.

Moreover, you will avoid losing objects and, every time you need something, you will know exactly where to go look for it. The only thing you have to work on after doing this is taking a moment every day to put things back where they belong after you have used them.

Image: Annie Spratt

Once you have taken the previous steps, you are ready to invest in storage solutions and this will feel like a pivotal step towards organization. Storage solutions will make your house both functional and visually appealing. The right containers and organizers not only help you declutter (because the space is limited), but they will also help you ensure everything has a designated spot and maintain order.

Look for available options within your area, but consider using baskets, bins, plastic containers, or any other storage item that works for you. If you still haven’t got the budget for this, use plastic containers you already have, you can always go back on this step to prioritize aesthetics.

Image: Tamara Malaniy

If you choose to use colored containers, labels come in quite handy. Even with clear containers, labels will help you quickly locate items. Moreover, if there are small children in the house, labels can help them find the right container for their stuff easily which will, ultimately, strengthen their own organizational habits and independence.

Labels give uniformity and coherence to a space and you can either make them yourself or use an electronic label maker.

Image: Myriam Zilles

This is a smart strategy to maintain your space clutter-free and well-organized throughout the year. Seasonal items such as clothes, decorations, sports equipment, and more specific items like suitcases can be kept in special areas like the garage or on the highest shelves of a closet.

As you can imagine, the first step to do this is to assess your belongings and categorize them by season.

As you pack away off-season items, take the opportunity to assess their condition and decide whether anything needs to be repaired or replaced before the next season.

Consider using hard-material containers to keep your belongings well protected and avoid any possible damages unforeseen events may cause.

Image: vadim kaipov

When you don’t have much space for furniture or your furniture is full of stuff (if they are, you should go back to the first tip!) vertical and dead spaces are a great solution to maximize space and create alternative areas.

You can install shelves or hanging organizers to keep your belongings off the floor and on common surfaces like the dining table. On a similar note, you can take advantage of areas such as under the bed, and behind the doors to keep appropriate stuff.

This not only creates additional storage space but also adds visual focus points to your home decor.

Image: Pierre Bamin

When defining specific areas and homes for your belongings prioritize two things: quick location and easy accessibility. Vertical space can only be used so much, that is, there is no point in having a shelf for mugs if you have to get a ladder to reach one every morning for breakfast. The same goes for kids’ wardrobes, they will never be able to hang their own clothes if they can’t reach the hangers or the rail.

Prioritize placing items in the space you most frequently use them and within reach so you don’t have to move things around, hence, creating a mess around one single item. Keep essentials accessible and less frequently objects higher up or in less accessible places.

Image: Anete Lusina

Regardless of how digital our lives can be, a house is always full of important items, especially paperwork. Developing and working on a system for managing it will foster organization in the house, but also your personal life and finances.

Consider investing in a filing cabinet or organizer and set aside a time and day each week to sort out paperwork. Create folders for different types of documents and label them accordingly to make it easier to find what you need when you need it. And never forget the first step, declutter when necessary, and get rid of old bills or documents that are irrelevant to your present life.

Image: Paico Oficial

Rome wasn’t built in a day, organizational habits weren’t either, so, be patient and find ways to foster your habits. Create routines for tidying up and maintaining organization. For example, divide the chores within the week. That way, you will ensure everything gets done at least once a week. Laundry on Saturdays, bathroom cleaning on Sundays and Thursdays, and so on.

Now, within a day, create small routines that guarantee everything is in its place before you go to sleep. There is nothing like waking up to a clean and organized home every day, this will boost your inspiration and productivity.