Wholly Buyable

Death and Destruction are never satisfied, a fool can be crushed into powder yet still not lose his foolishness, and good friends sharpen each other with honest feedback. The Bible's proverbs are universal and speak to people outside of any religion as well as those who revere the Bible as their holy book. They can be read as advice from a father to his son, a mandate from God to his people o...

The wisdom of other ancients continues in the second part of the Thirty Sayings of the Wise. A later king of Israel, Hezekiah then adds some more of Solomon's proverbs.  Fools, sluggards, neighbours, messengers and wives all come under the spotlight in sayings rich with everyday references: sparrows, honey, donkeys, a thornbush, lions and a golden apple. Oh, and a dog returning to its vomit.....

Loose tongues cost lives, a bribe pacifies the angry and those with a fondness of wine will never be rich. Many of Solomon's wise sayings are as true today as when they were written three millennia ago. In this episode, the rhythm changes a little as the book segues from Solomon's own wisdom to what he refers to as 'The Thirty Sayings of the Wise', many of which still resonate...

The wealthy person who loses friends when they lose their money. The gossip who betrays a friend's confidence. And the person who is too lazy to lift their spoon to their mouth. The torrent of timeless, poetic and sometimes comical proverbs continues. Written and produced by Chas Bayfield Music by Michael Auld and Jon Hawkins Music Cover art by Lisa Goff Send any questions or feedback to cont...

Gracious words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.  Pride comes before a fall. Grey hair is a crown of splendour.  Even the fool who keeps silent is seen as wise. The proverbs that populate his book are as honest as they are poetic; much needed truths in a world that is craving authenticity and wisdom. Enjoy the podcast and send any questions or feedback to contact@whollyb...

Sometimes terse, sometimes poetic, sometimes enigmatic, these often two-line sayings balance the good against the bad, the preferable against the undesirable. Some of these proverbs offer wisdom, others state the blindingly obvious. Either way, readers are left with accurate insights into a world of relationships, work, commerce and politics that are as familiar in the twenty first century as they...

A beautiful woman who shows no discretion is like a pig with a ring in its nose. Morally upstanding people care for their animals. And those who spare the rod ruin their children. The Book of Proverbs is not afraid to pull punches and the aphorisms that flow from Solomon's pen are nothing if not colourful. Enjoy the wisdom! Written and produced by Chas Bayfield Music by Michael Auld and Jon H...

The title of T E Lawrence (of Arabia)'s  autobiography, 'Seven Pillars of Wisdom' is taken from a verse in the Book of Proverbs. In this episode, we also meet 'Love covers a multitude of sins' and the finger wagging evangelicals' favourite, 'the wages of sin is death'. The Book of Proverbs is not only a treasure trove of wisdom, its beautiful poetic language...

"Come, let us drink deeply of love till morning. Let us enjoy ourselves with love!" Such is the siren call of the adulterous older woman, intent on seducing a foolish yet lustful young man while her husband is away on business. This is a one way street from which there is no return, Solomon advises his son,  It is fair to say this is one of the more colourful sections of the Bible, but i...

A new season begins. This is the Book of Proverbs, a monster collection of aphorisms and other gems of knowledge culled by Israel's King Solomon and other wise ancients. Much of the book is aimed at the king's children, but the wisdom is universal. The opening section is a shot across the bows, a signal of what is to come before the floodgates open. An appetite whetter if you will. As wi...

Finally! We reach the end of the Book of Psalms. The book ends on a high as writers sing unrestrained songs of praise to God. As the Psalms reach their upbeat finale, expect Milton, Mendelssohn and missing verses. And joy, lots of it.   Written and produced by Chas Bayfield Music by Michael Auld and Jon Hawkins Music Cover art by Lisa Goff

The idea that God knows each person on earth intimately has proven one of the more attractive facets of Christianity, and the concept makes its first biblical landfall in the Book of Psalms. The final short songs of the Psalms are some of the most joyful and poetic as the book crescendoes towards its finale. Written and produced by Chas Bayfield Music by Michael Auld and Jon Hawkins Music Cover ar...

Originally sung by reggae band The Melodians, and made internationally famous by Boney M, the lyrics about exiles weeping by Babylon's rivers were written thousands of years earlier by a scribe who remembered the desolation felt by his captive people.  Modern day fame has catapulted this psalm into the public consciousness but it conceals horrors that are less well known. Psalm 137 is a song...

Short but very sweet. The songs sung by ancient pilgrims as they travelled from the far corners of the Jewish world to the Jerusalem temple are immortalised in this section of the Book of Psalms. These are the 'Songs of Ascent' - despite the hill on which the city was built not being the highest in Israel, the journey to Jerusalem was always 'up'. These short songs of joy have...

Psalm 119 concludes. The entire poem is a eulogy to God's laws and the psalmist admires, studies, remembers, contemplates, learns and hopes to understand these rules.  There is a repetitive, meditative quality to the poem which is followed by a series of songs sung as pilgrims travelled to Zion, the City of God, Jerusalem. These are the Songs of Ascent, and here is where they begin. Written a...

A shout of joy that becomes a political hot potato in New Testament times, and the longest chapter in the Bible.  If it’s God‘s laws, rules, ways, decrees, precepts, statutes and commands you’re interested, in this is your happy place. Written and produced by Chas Bayfield. Music by Michael Auld and Jon Hawkins Music. Cover art by Lisa Goff

We're all familiar with the phrase "Hallelujah". A heartfelt shout of joy uttered by religious and non religious alike. It first makes landfall in a series of Psalms known, unsurprisingly, as the Halel. We run into these songs here and find that they contain the shortest chapter in the entire Bible, a song that punches above its weight. Expect euphoria. Written and produced by Chas...

Book Five, the final part of the Book of Psalms begins. This is where we meet the most quoted Psalm in the Bible, and one of its most beloved. Psalm 110 sees Israel's great king David referring enigmatically to an even greater king, one who he describes as his Lord, a ruler whose kingdom will reign forever. Christians believe they know who this king might be! But first, the book navigates thr...

Much as the Psalms were songs of praise to God, some were written as a kind of oral history; a retelling of Israel's story set to music. The music and the repeated telling of these stories embedded in Israel's people a sense of where they had come from and how God had rescued them, set them apart and chosen them to be his special people. This podcast retells that retelling in plain Engli...

The Bible (and the Wholly Buyable podcast) reaches its halfway point with songs of such ebullience they have inspired some of the world's greatest musicians. Enjoy the joy. Written and produced by Chas Bayfield Music by Michael Auld and Jon Hawkins Music Cover Art by Lisa Goff

The Book of Psalms is so long that it is split into five separate books. This is where Book Four begins. Some believe that these are some of the oldest psalms  and that they were written by the Old Testament ancient, Moses. If that is the case, this would make them some of the oldest writing in the Bible. The transience of life, God's shield of invincibility and his praiseworthiness all take...

The Psalms is not a book you can rush. These poems pack an even greater punch when you stop to inspect them more closely. If you're not religious and just want a better handle on what is in between the leatherette cover of a Bible, you've found your happy place. We're currently sailing through the Book of Psalms, the ancient Jewish songs that not only accompanied worship in Jerusale...

We're halfway through the Book of Psalms and we're hitting peak poetry. To the psalmist, one day in God's courts is worth a thousand elsewhere. He would sooner work as a humble temple guard than live in luxury with his enemy. Adoration of God is the order of the day, interspersed with the occasional request to God to pour out his fury on any nations that do not worship him. As ever,...

Who knew? The title of John Steinbeck's classic has its origins in the Book of Psalms. Join us as the Jews' epic song book passes its midway point. This episode sees the song of a man who seems so broken he cannot speak, and we hear of women who have no more tears left to weep. There is also a history lesson courtesy of the second longest song in the book. All delivered religion free for...

Book Two of the Book of Psalms ends and Book Three begins. David is all but silent and it's the turn of the temple musicians known as the Sons of Korah and another writer called Asaph to have their voices heard. David's son, Solomon, also finds his voice. However, the quintessential themes remain: God is a refuge and a rock and he is called upon to rescue the writers and their nation fro...