Book Club: Book Review of The Bible Recap

 

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I was very excited to read and review The Bible Recap: A One-Year Guide to Reading and Understanding the Entire Bible by Tara-Leigh Cobble. The beautiful hardcover book is designed to help you read through the entire Bible in one year using a chronological plan. For those who struggle with understanding what they have read after reading the Bible, this will be a great resource. Cobble sets out to explain and connect the story of the Scripture over the course of 365 days. 

What Is The Bible Recap? 

The 752-page book offers first the three mistakes that the author made when trying to read the Bible cover to cover and presents a simple explanation as to how to use the book. Cobble presents the information according to a one-year chronological plan but encourages you to use your regular Bible as she has her plan presented in the book. The English Standard Version (ESV) will be the primary translation used in The Bible Recap, but you can use your own preferred version. After you read the Bible chapters for the day, return to The Bible Recap and 

• Read the summary provided
• Visit any links provided 
• Read "Today's God Shot" where Cobble "points to one place where God's attributes are on display in that day's reading"

While I haven't read The Bible Recap cover to cover yet, it appears that each day's readings' summary and "Today's God Shot" are presented on two pages. This makes it very easy to read and digest during the time you read your Bible. For example, one of the books I find to be the most difficult to read personally is Job. The first two weeks spend time in Job. I found the summary to be one of the most clear – if not the clearest – summary of the book of Job I have read.

What Did I Think of The Bible Recap? 

While The Bible Recap is less scholarly and provides more of an overview of the Bible, I think I am going to thoroughly enjoy using it this coming year to read through the Bible chronologically. (This is something I have wanted to do for several years, but I haven't found a plan yet that I liked.) Looking through the book, the readings appear to be manageable, which is important for this homeschooling, work-at-home mom. As I started reading The Bible Recap, I discovered many places in Cobble's summary where I wanted to go back to reread the Scriptures to identify the references she was making. I really appreciate books that make me look more deeply into the Bible. 

In the "Today's God Shot," I appreciated the fact that the author points out how God's character is found in each of the day's readings. For example, on Day 160, we read Proverbs 19-21 where we see how God identifies himself with the poor and as someone who reimburses the giver. "God not only identifies with the poor, but He's also generous to the rich" (337). In each "God Shot," Cobble ends with "He's where the joy is!" This is a wonderful reminder as we read through the Bible. 

As I wrote earlier, I have not read The Bible Recap: A One-Year Guide to Reading and Understanding the Entire Bible yet in its entirety. I usually do read a book cover to cover prior to writing and sharing a review, but this is not like the normal fiction or non-fiction books I review. The Bible Recap requires you to read through the Bible and this book to get the full appreciation of the author's words. Through the year, I will be sharing on social media my thoughts of the book as I progress through it as I will use this work as my main Bible reading plan for 2021. 

I recommend The Bible Recap for those seeking a Bible reading plan. As it is a chronological reading plan, you might want to keep that in consideration of whether it will work for you and your Bible reading. You could use this book at the start of 2021 or pick it up at any time of the year as it is not dated with specific days like January 1 or January 2, but each day's readings are listed as Day 15, Day 16, and so on. So whether you receive the book prior to the start of the New Year or buy it mid-year, The Bible Recap can still work as your 'reading through the Bible' reading plan guide.