In Christian Old Testament Biography
Jacob seems to be anything but a model disciple.
He's a trickster, liar, and selfishly ambitious man who fathers children with four women and leads a dysfunctional family rife with jealousy and backstabbing. But Jacob is also Israel, the namesake of the Old Testament community of God, chosen and blessed.
As such, this sinner-saint, who limps along with the Lord, burdened by weakness and beset by problems, is the mirror image of all of us who follow Jesus. In his life we see our lives, our struggles, our failures, and most especially the God who loves us and chooses us as his own.
As we explore his bio, from his wrangling in the womb with Esau to his death as an old man in
Egypt, we will learn more about ourselves and the God who is with us and for us in Jesus the Messiah.
"This book gives hope and encouragement to those of us who have come home with our Sunday best looking disheveled and dirty, for those who have scrapes and scars on their knees from one failure after another. Chad takes a the life of a guy who today would be a candidate for the Jerry Springer show and show how God can use the most dysfunctional among us."
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"I read this book in two days, I couldn't stop reading it. The story of Jacob is told in a very interesting format, it is as though he is a family member, or actually is one of us. As the story is told, the author connects to our sufferings, our doubts and questions, our every day life, and the power of forgiveness shines through the text."
Chad Bird is a Scholar in Residence at 1517. He has served as a pastor, professor, and guest lecturer in Old Testament and Hebrew. He holds master's degrees from Concordia Theological Seminary and Hebrew Union College. He has contributed articles to Christianity Today, The Gospel Coalition, Modern Reformation, The Federalist, Lutheran Forum, and other journals and websites.
He is also the author of several books, including Unveiling Mercy, The Christ Key, Night Driving: Notes from a Prodigal Soul, Your God Is Too Glorious: Finding God in the Most Unexpected Places, and more. He cohosts two popular podcasts: "40 Minutes in the Old Testament" and "Hidden Streams." Chad and his wife Stacy have four children and three grandchildren. They enjoy life together in the Texas Hill Country.
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