Chronological Bible sparks debate

Tim Murphy, @ the Religion News Service reviews the recent controversy over the
"Chronological Study Bible".

From the publisher:

The Chronological Study Bible is the only study Bible that presents the text of the New King James Version in chronological order-the order in which the events actually happened-with notes, articles, and full-color graphics that connect the reader to the history and culture of Bible times and gives the reader a dramatic, "you are there" experience.

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The controversy is that the latest edition rejiggers the order of books, psalms, and Gospels in an effort to provide a historical framework for a text most scholars consider chronologically challenged.

So, for example, whole sections of Isaiah and Nehemiah are reordered to better reflect an accurate historical timeline; the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John are merged into one based on Mark's chronology; and some of St. Paul's letters (which traditionally appear later in the New Testament) are woven into the Book of Acts.

The most recognizable changes in the Chronological Study Bible come in the placement of non-narrative sections — the books that aren't necessarily anchored by specific people, places and events. The book of Psalms, which appears in the middle of the Old Testament in most editions, is split up in the the new edition by time period. All Psalms relating to David, for example, will instead appear as supplements to the relevant books of the Old Testament such as 1 Chronicles.

Scholars say trying to rearrange individual books requires getting to the bottom of some of the world's oldest known cases of identity theft: Many biblical works were the handiwork of multiple authors, all writing under a single name.

The Bible's order is significant for other reasons as well. Some scholars worry that changing the order would impact the Bible's meaning and diminish the value of non-narrative elements, such as the book of Psalms.

"Part of the problem, and to me one of the flaws, is the assumption that this Bible is working with — that (narrative) — is the primary genre of literature in the Bible. That just isn't true," said the Rev. Bruce Birch, who teaches at the Wesley Theological Seminary in Washington, D.C.

"You're writing a new biblical narrative," said Timothy Beal, a professor at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland. "I guess in this age of (cutting and pasting), it seems like a way to come up with a new Bible."