Review: Mysteries of the Messiah
Today I’m reviewing Mysteries of the Messiah: Unveiling Divine Connections from Genesis to Today, a nonfiction book by Rabbi Jason Sobel.
Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy from the publisher as part of Read with Audra blog tours.
From the publisher:
Are you settling for half the story? Highlighting connections that have been hidden from non-Jewish eyes, Rabbi Jason Sobel will connect the dots between the Old and New Testament, helping you see the Bible with clarity as God intended.
Most people—even people of faith—do not understand how the Bible fits together. Too many Christians accept half an inheritance, content to embrace merely the New Testament, while Jewish people may often experience the same by embracing only the Old Testament. But God has an intricate plan and purpose for both the Old and the New.
In Mysteries of the Messiah, Rabbi Jason Sobel reveals the many connections in Scripture hidden in plain sight. Known for his emphatic declaration “but there’s more!” he guides us in seeing the passion and purpose of the Messiah.
My review:
One of our former pastors likes to say, “The Bible is its own best commentary.” With that in mind, I find it fascinating to notice connections between the Old Testament and the New. Over and over, all throughout the Bible, we can see the whole scope of the Story pointing to the Messiah. That’s why I was interested to read Mysteries of the Messiah, from the perspective of a Messianic Jew.
I was fascinated to learn how closely the Hebrew alphabet is tied to numbers and how words have numeric value. Apparently that is an extremely important aspect of Jewish understanding of the Bible, but I have to admit I got bogged down with the numerology. I couldn’t wrap my mind around those connections. For that reason, I had a hard time finishing the book, and I didn’t get as much out of it as I had hoped.
I appreciated how this book takes you through several familiar Old Testament stories and characters and shows how they either symbolize or point to Jesus. Some connections I had known about and others were new to me.
Overall I give this book 3.5 stars, which is somewhere between “liked it” and “really liked it” but not “loved it.” If it sounds like something you’d be interested in, I invite you to enter the giveaway:
a Rafflecopter giveaway
