Moral Questions of the Bible

Timeless Truth in a Changing World

Are all the moral commands of the Bible meant to be obeyed exactly for all time, or are there some that need to be adapted for our modern world? Scripture contains lots of guidance on ethical issues, including statements about polygamy, slavery, divorce, sex, and other things that sound strange to our modern ears. Even Christians, who believe the Bible is God's word, disagree on whether women should wear head coverings, whether Christians can ever lie, whether women should preach, and whether Christians should drink alcohol. How can we resolve these issues and figure out how to apply the Bible to our lives? David Instone-Brewer helps answer this question by showing how the Bible's moral commands were understood in their ancient cultural context. The more we understand what God and the biblical authors intended to communicate to the original audience, the better we will be able to make sense of how to apply those commands today. In brief chapters that address a wide variety of moral issues, Instone-Brewer equips Bible readers with a paradigm they can use to discern matters for themselves: Is a biblical command timeless or time-bound? If the command itself is time-bound, what is the timeless purpose behind it? And how do we remain faithful to the Bible's commands today even when handling subjects the Bible does not address? The Scripture in Context series is driven by the conviction that there is nothing as exciting, direct, provocative, and spiritually enlightening as the Bible when we read it as it was meant to be read. Each book in the series dives into the ancient cultural context behind Bible passages, examining the effect this context had on what the Bible writers were saying and how we should understand their words today. When we read the Bible in light of its context, it is anything but boring. Instead, God's word can speak to us as powerfully as it did to those who first read it. Chapters are short and informal, so it's easy to read one chapter at a time or the whole book straight through.