This is the second week of a study that will “unfold” the story of the Bible for you as we read fourteen of the 73 books in the Bible. If you’re just getting started with us, I’d encourage you to have a look at my page outlining our study, where you can read the plan of what we’re doing as well as print off a checklist for the daily readings.

This week, we begin the second period in our study, focusing on the Patriarchs. This period covers about 400 years of history, beginning in 2200 BC and ending about 1800 BC. This period will examine several key biblical figures who are at the head of a tribe, family, or clan, each of whom plays a key role in Israel’s history. In the chapters we’ll be reading this week, we’ll see how God makes three promises Abram (Abraham) in Genesis 12: to give him land, to make his name great, and to bring a universal blessing to everyone. For his part, Abram is asked to trust God – which sounds easy yet is something any of us can find difficult once we’re asked to actually do it.

The patriarchs were the first bearers of God’s promise to future generations. Genesis 12-50 narrates a series of linked promise episodes that trace the beginnings of the plan of salvation in human history… the patriarchs are more than the genealogical fathers of Israel, they are the spiritual fathers of all who believe (Hebrews 4:1-28).

Scott Hahn, Catholic Bible Dictionary

We’ll be reading this section for a few weeks, and at the bottom of this post you can see my video explanation of this entire period.

This week, please read:

Included in the story of the unfolding of God’s promises to Abraham, there are going to be a couple of difficult things you’ll come across. One is the fact that there are some family relationships that we, looking back 4000 years later, find …unsettling. One of the key things to keep in mind here is the fact that last week, we read about the fact that humanity had wandered far away from God’s plan. Even as He is bringing them back using this covenant with Abraham… it should be clear to us just how far we still have to go. There are also some issues of brutality that might also leave you unsettled – note that this won’t be the last time we come across the issue of violence in the Old Testament – Bishop Barron has an explanation that might help. If you have further questions on these issues – or anything else – please send me a message and I’ll endeavor to help you make sense of things.

Below is my video explaining this second section of our study. Happy reading!