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Study through the entire Bible, Genesis through Revelation, in one year! This "flagship" Logos course grew out of Dr. Creasy's year-long UCLA program, "The English Bible as Literature." One of the most highly rated courses on campus, "The English Bible as Literature" placed Dr. Creasy among the top 2% of UCLA teaching faculty for over 20 years!

Dr. Creasy has noted on many occasions that the Bible—in its final, finished form—is a unified literary work that is linear in structure; its main character is God; its conflict is sin; and its theme is redemption. Viewing the Bible from this perspective, the curtain rises on our story in Genesis 1, and it falls in Revelation 22. From a literary perspective, Revelation is the final chapter in a sprawling 2,000 page, 66-chapter story.

Peter and Paul were close associates, and Peter had read many of Paul's writings, some of which, he says “are hard to understand”. Peter was a commercial fisherman, not a scholar like Paul. Nonetheless, Peter has in mind in the early 60s to write an epistle addressing a number of important issues - but he doesn’t feel rhetorically equipped to do so. Enter Paul’s associate, Silas. Peter says, “With the help of Silas I have written this letter.” And what a letter it is!

Although Matthew may not be the first written Gospel, like Isaiah it is positioned first in its sequence of four Gospels. Opening with a 42-generation genealogy, Matthew reminds us of the linear nature of God’s plan, and Matthew forms a link—a swinging door—between the Old and New Testaments. Matthew is a Jew writing for a Jewish audience, and his Gospel provides our first perspective on the birth and public ministry of Jesus Christ. Join Logos Bible Study’s Dr. Bill Creasy as he leads us through this dazzling work.

Although Romans is not the earliest of Paul’s writings, like Isaiah and Matthew, Romans sits at the head of the epistles and letters. Written as a formal argument and structured as a scholastic diatribe, Romans presents Paul’s great thesis that we are saved by grace through faith, not by works of Law. This is revolutionary! Romans, perhaps more than any other book ever written, has fundamentally changed Western civilization, and it is foundational to understanding all of Paul’s other epistles and letters.

Luke is a Gentile writing for a particular person, another Gentile named Theophilus. In his Gospel, Luke provides a detailed and orderly account of the life and ministry of Jesus. Although Matthew, Mark, and Luke draw from many of the same sources for their material, each Gospel writer adapts his material for his particular audience and purpose. Luke presents his material in a brilliant prose style, as he creates a specific voice for his narrator and specific, identifiable voices for his characters.

Although not the first of Paul’s epistles, his Epistle to the Church in Rome (or simply, Romans) takes the place of first importance. Written from Ephesus in A.D. 57, Paul crafts a formal argument in Romans, employing the structure of a “scholastic diatribe,” stating and defending his theses that we are “saved by grace through faith.” Romans is a brilliant work, and it is foundational for understanding the all that Paul has written.

While Paul is in Corinth, A.D. 50 – 52, he writes three epistles, two to the church in Thessalonica and one to the churches in Galatia. Paul spends only “three Sabbath days” in Thessalonica (Acts 17: 2) and he encounters such opposition that “as soon as it was night, the brothers sent Paul and Silas away to Berea” (Acts 17: 16), lest they be stoned.

Seventy-three of the 150 psalms are traditionally ascribed to David. As we read the "Davidic Psalms," we see deeply into David's heart as he struggles with God, with others and with himself. These psalms are deeply moving and often, brutally honest.

Join Logos Bible Study as we continue the story of redemption. As told by Dr. Bill Creasy, Israel falls into the cruel bondage of slavery in Egypt. And it is no accident: God had said to Abraham 500 years earlier that his descendants would be “enslaved and mistreated four hundred years”.

The Minor Prophets are minor because they are shorter in length than the Major Prophets, not because they are less important: Isaiah is 66 chapters long; Obadiah is 1 chapter. All of the Minor Prophets write during the time of the kings, 1050 – 586 B.C., or after the return from Babylonian Captivity, 539 – 430 B.C. Most tell us when they are active. Hosea, for example, begins: “The word of the Lord that came to Hosea son of Beeri during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah, kings of Judah…” (Hosea 1: 1).

In Genesis the curtain rises on our story. Genesis introduces most of the major themes in the Bible. Listen closely as Logos Bible Study’s Dr. Bill Creasy takes you through the story of creation, the fall of man, grace, atonement, faith, justification, redemption and much more in this extraordinary story of beginnings.

When Paul is arrested in Jerusalem in late A.D. 57, it plunges Paul into a legal morass that sees him held under protective custody in Caesarea for nearly two years, transported to Rome for his legal appeal, and two more years waiting in Rome for his court hearing. Altogether, Paul is sidelined for nearly five years, A.D. 58 – 62. It is important to understand that Paul is not a prisoner at this time: He is a Roman citizen, first arrested for inciting a riot, but quickly put under protective custody and sent to Rome for a legal appeal that he initiates.

The story of David continues in 2 Samuel. With the death of Saul and his three sons at Mt. Gilboa, the door opens for David to become king. But David has, in fact, no legitimate claim to the kingship; indeed, he has been working for a decade as a mercenary for Israel’s Philistine enemies. Listen as Dr. Bill Creasy follows David from the triumph of his kingship to his colossal fall and ultimate reconciliation with God.

Titus is classified among Paul’s letters, but I put it in this lesson before turning to the General Epistles. The General Epistles are all those correspondences written by anyone other than Paul: Hebrews, once attributed to Paul, is now attributed to an anonymous author, someone in Paul’s inner circle; James is attributed to “James, the Lord’s brother” and the leader of the church in Jerusalem (Galatians 1: 19); 1 & 2 Peter are attributed to the Apostle Peter; 1,2,3 John are attributed to the Apostle John; and Jude is attributed to Jude, another of the Lord’s brothers (Matthew 13: 55).

Some think Leviticus is a “boring” book, yet it springs to life with the masterful storytelling skills of Dr. Bill Creasy. Listen as he weaves the texture, tone, and color of daily Israelite life during this amazing period of biblical history. With its emphasis on personal holiness, atonement, and sacrifice for sins, Leviticus separates the Israelites from their surrounding culture, calling them to be holy, as God is holy.

If Isaiah is the “thundering prophet”, then Jeremiah is the “weeping prophet”. Jeremiah holds the terrible position of being both a priest and a prophet; he represents both the people before God, and God before the people—not unlike a lawyer representing both husband and wife in a contentious and bitter divorce! Join Logos Bible Study’s Dr. Bill Creasy as he follows Jeremiah, the “weeping prophet”, through his many trials and tribulations.

From Solomon’s reign to the prophetic call of Elijah, 1 Kings tells the story of the collapse of David’s united monarchy into a nearly 100-year civil war and the fracture of a nation into two kingdoms: Israel and Judah. Logos Bible Study’s Dr. Bill Creasy journeys deeply into the historical and cultural nuances that underlie this amazing and compelling story.

“When David was old and well advanced in years, he could not keep warm even when they put covers over him” (1 Kings 1: 1). Old and sick, the consequences of David’s sin continue to dog him. Adonijah, now David’s eldest surviving son, engineers a palace coup to overthrow David. When David learns of the plot, he anoints his son, Solomon, as king (970-930 B.C.). As David’s tenth son, Solomon is nowhere close to being heir to the throne, but David raises him to power to fulfill a promise made to Bathsheba.

Paul sends 1 Corinthians to the church at Corinth, and when they receive the epistle, they are livid! They immediately write back to Paul in very harsh terms (the letter from Corinth has been lost, but Paul alludes to it in 2 Corinthians), prompting Paul to get on board ship in Ephesus, sail to Corinth and address the church in person. It is not a pleasant visit. When Paul gets back to Ephesus he has second thoughts about his “short but painful visit”, and he writes 2 Corinthians to smooth things over.