Written for lay persons, students and clergy, either as individuals or in study groups, this book presents new insights into familiar biblical characters and events. Material from ancient texts enlightens readers about the creation, the garden of Eden, the flood, and other familiar stories. It shows how special interests and literary styles of the gospel writers influenced their accounts of what Jesus said. The Bible never 'says' anything because its writers do the saying. Words of Jesus may differ from what he actually said, because they were written from memory long after he died.