Never in my daily Bible readings have I considered taking it apart and putting it back together. In Eric Robinson’s second book about hidden meanings in Scripture, he gently dissects the Bible to show that there is far more on each page than meets the eye.
Over Our Heads is a more challenging study than Robinson’s first effort, Jesus in the Shadows. Here he argues that the Scriptures are multilayered with significance beyond the words themselves, and that the reader willing to dig will find hidden treasures. He emphasizes that the task is not easy, and that not everyone may be a Bible scholar. But the deeper our study goes, he says, the closer we draw to God.
The book is rich in examples of how everything in the Old Testament points to Jesus. Noah, for example, is a “type” of Christ in that, being righteous in God’s sight, he is saved from the flood, which is a kind of baptism that cleansed the world of sin. Robinson goes on to demonstrate how the Book of Esther, the Book of Job, and the conversion of Saul on the road to Damascus are all stories of salvation. These and many other examples mirror the life of Jesus.
The author encourages us to approach the Old Testament as the Hebrews read it before Jesus appeared. He explains how important symbolism was to the ancient Hebrew culture, so that anyone could understand that the word “leaven” is about more than baking bread, or that references to the palm tree stand for righteousness. Robinson’s excellent scholarship offers the reader a path into the deeper meanings implicit in Jesus’ teachings. It clarifies statements and events that otherwise may seem baffling.
Some of Robinson’s explorations, particularly the significance of numbers, were over my head. To his credit, he assures the reader not to worry; that the Bible is for everyone, not just for scholars, and that it contains as much treasure as one wishes to look for. Eric Robinson does the Church an invaluable service by demonstrating how solidly all of Scripture is grounded in God’s saving grace.
