Includes Bibliography and Subject Index.

Part One: The Shape of the Bible -- 1. The Languages and Contents of the First Christian Bibles -- 2. The Shaping of the New Testament -- 3. The Physical Appearance of Early Christian Bibles -- 4. Chapters and Verses -- 5. The Transmission of the Text Through the Centuries -- 6. From Manuscripts to Printed Bibles -- Part Two: The Use of the Bible -- 7. The Reading and Use of the Bible in Worship -- 8. The Use of Psalms -- 9. Private Reading -- 10. The Bible and Education -- 11. The Bible and the Social Order -- Part Three: The Interpretation of the Bible -- 12. Models of Interpretation -- 13. Crucial Texts: Creation -- 14. Crucial Texts: The Exodus -- 15. Crucial Texts: The Word -- 16. Lessons from the Past and Promises for the Future -- Cast of Characters -- For Further Reading.

"A concise history of the Bible: its creation, use, and interpretation What is the Bible? To answer this question we must understand the Bible's origins in the early church. In this book, celebrated church historian Justo González introduces the reader to some important features of the earliest Bibles-for instance, the Bible's original languages, its division into chapters and verses, and even its physical appearance in its first forms. González also explores the use of the Bible in the early church (such as in worship or in private reading) and the interpretation of the Bible throughout the ensuing centuries, giving readers a holistic sense of the Bible's emergence as the keystone of Christian life, from its beginnings to present times"--