If the Bible is a divinely-inspired moral guide for personal and social good, why does it contain so many stories that seem to glorify violence and the mistreatment of others? Why does God sometimes seem so angry and cruel? And what about the parts of the Bible that just don’t make sense?
 
In his vast writings, eighteenth-century spiritual teacher Emanuel Swedenborg offers clarification: beneath the often-confusing literal text of the Bible is a clear inner meaning that directly points to an inclusive, always-loving, always-present God. In A New Key to the Bible: Unlock Its Inner Meaning and Open the Door to Your Spirit, author Bruce Henderson guides the reader through Swedenborg’s interpretation of the Bible, offering up a thought-provoking yet digestible way to understand the Creation story, as well as other famous parables such as Adam and Eve, Noah’s Ark, Abraham and Sarah, Moses, the life of Jesus, and the apocalyptic imagery of Revelation. At each step of the way, Henderson shows how these Scripture stories written thousands of years ago reflect our own spiritual paths and give meaning to the challenges we face along our journey in the present day.
 
For readers new to Swedenborg, A New Key to the Bible serves as an overview of the thousands of pages Swedenborg wrote about the inner meaning of the Bible. For spiritual seekers who feel a connection to the Bible but are sometimes troubled by its contents, Swedenborg reassures with a transcendent level of understanding about how God wants to inspire us through sacred text.

Bruce Henderson is the author of Window to Eternity and Why Does God Let It Happen? A journalist for most of his career, Bruce served as editorial page editor and columnist for the Bucks County Courier Times. He has been the director of development and director of communications for the Academy of the New Church, Bryn Athyn College, and the General Church of the New Jerusalem in Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania. He is now editor of New Church Life.