The quote, of course, is from Ecc 12:12 and means that I’ve been tagged or memed or whatever it’s called. David at Jollyblogger was kind enough to saddle me with this task. Being sufficiently neurotic and guilt-driven, I feel compelled to respond. You can read David’s responses here.

Here are the questions; I copied them directly from David’s post. I will answer them diligently and to the best of my ability. I promise.

1. How many books have I owned?
2. What was the last book you bought?
3. What was the last book that you’ve read?
4. Name five books that have meant a lot to you.
5. Tag five people that haven’t played yet.

1. How many books have I owned?

Now, this is an interesting question, perhaps intended to fool the amateur test-taker into giving an incorrect answer. You see, all the other questions are about me but this one is not: this question asks about the questioner, “How many books have I owned?” And, as you might expect, I have no idea how many books David has owned.

Personally, I have owned 3,503 books, give or take 1,284. About ten years or so ago I gave 80-90 percent to Grace Bible Church, hoping to build up the reference section of the library. I didn’t anticipate the pastors swooping in like vultures to devour the best, leaving the library with just a fraction (maybe 9/13ths) to put on the shelves. It’s OK, though, because I wanted the books to be used more than I was using them. The downside is I sometimes have to borrow one of my own books from one of the pastors!

2. What was the last book you bought?

The last book I bought was Philosophical Foundations for a Christian Worldview by J.P. Moreland & William Lane Craig. I haven’t had a chance to start it yet, but it seems to be the kind of book I usually enjoy. I’m looking forward to reading it sometime this summer, although it is a textbook and will likely take awhile to wade through. That’s fine: I’m in no hurry.

3. What was the last book that you’ve read?

Another trick question: it wants to know the last book I read, not the last book I finished. Since I’m a nice guy, however, I’ll answer both. The last books I read (simultaneously: two eyes, two books!) were Douglas Moo’s The Epistle to the Romans in the NICNT series and C.E.B. Cranfield’s Romans: A Shorter Commentary. Moo’s work is perhaps the best modern commentary on Romans and very thorough; Cranfield’s is a distillation of his two-volume commentary in the ICC series and provides some valuable alternatives to Moo in several places.

The last book I finished was Father, Son, & Holy Spirit by Bruce Ware. It’s short but solid and a very good resource. You can read my review of it here.

4. Name five books that have meant a lot to you.

This is difficult. I’ll list them without comment and in no particular order:

    1. The Drama of the Gifted Child by Alice Miller
    2. Fire in the Belly by Sam Keen
    3. Decision Making and the Will of God by Gary Friessen
    4. The Gospel of Mark by William Lane (NICNT series)
    5. True Spirituality by Francis Schaeffer (tie)
    5. Studies in the Sermon on the Mount by D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (tie)
    5. Healing the Masculine Soul by Gordon Dalbey (tie)
    5. The Epistle to the Romans by Douglas Moo (tie)
    5. Balancing the Christian Life by Charles Ryrie (tie)
    5. Ten or twenty other books that I’m forgetting right now (tie)

5. Tag five people that haven’t played yet.

Hmm, since I don’t know who has played and who hasn’t, I’ll have to go out on a limb. OK, here’s who I’m tagging:

    1. George W. Bush
    2. Scot Peterson
    3. Joel Osteen
    4. Alice Cooper
    5. Tom Cruise


2 Cor 1.13