"Good Book" , P. 12-13

"Good Book" , P. 12-13

-In Plotz' interpretation of Chapters 12-17, he mentions the ages of Abraham and Sarah and seems to find them significant. He says Abraham is "seventy-five years old and hasn't done anything with his life." He later mentions that Sarah was 90 years old at the time of the seduction of Abimilech, and therefore wouldn't be a desirable woman. What Plotz doesn't seem to realize is that the ages and time spans included in the Bible are almost certainly metaphorical, and should be read as such. Also, though, I will play devil's advocate here and propose that it was indeed possible for people to be that old. If that were the case, then maybe they aged much more slowly. There was no processed or fast food, no pollution. Therefore, if they literally were that old, they likely aged better. So it seems as though it may have actually been possible for these people to maybe be young or middle-aged for their time, and therefore at a less accomplished and more sexually appealing age range. Also, the earth was not over-populated at the time, so God didn't have to kill people off as soon as our current human earthly inhabitants.Just food for thought.

-I like that Plotz mentions Abram being a normal guy and having no particular reasons for God to choose him. It's kind of the 'everyman' idea. Which is exactly what God intended with His main characters. I always think of Mary when I think of this idea. I'm sure a lot of that has to do with Catholic school and the church's affinity for Mary. Regardless, the point is Mary was a simple peasant girl who was chosen by God to bear His son, who would later restore humanity. I like the humility of it. Whether Christian or not, it is interesting that the deity in this story chooses the simplest of people to do the greatest of deeds and create the best stories. These main players are generally not the great warriors or kings, though there are some of those. In fact, these simpletons end up using God's power to bring down the mightiest and most highly revered. David, a simple little guy with only a slingshot, brought down Goliath, the poster-boy of Philistine power. It's stories like these that make the Bible relatable, make these people someone you want to be. They're humble and consider themselves unworthy of great things, rather than constantly trying to prove their own greatness. The arrogant are smited by the humble. The underdog is victorious. It's like Rudy Ruettiger in "Rudy". The little guy who had the most heart was the one that won the most. He ended up with the most character and personal accomplishment. He is the character everyone loves, as are these Biblical characters. The take-home messages are if nothing else a great read as well as a good personal motivator, a means of striving not for personal gain, but for being a better person, and therefore gaining everything that matters.