Leland Ryken

Author of Dictionary of Biblical Imagery

74+ Works 8,439 Members 44 Reviews 1 Favorited

About the Author

Leland Ryken (PhD, University of Oregon) served as professor of English at Wheaton College for nearly fifty years. He has authored or edited over fifty books, including The Word of God in English and A Complete Handbook of Literary Forms in the Bible. He is a frequent speaker at the Evangelical show more Theological Society's annual meetings and served as literary stylist for the English Standard Version Bible. Glenda Faye Mathes (BLS, University of Iowa) is a professional writer with a passion for literary excellence. She has authored over a thousand articles and several nonfiction books as well as the Matthew in the Middle fiction series. Glenda has been the featured speaker at women's conferences and at seminars for prison inmates. show less

Includes the names: L. Ryken, LELAND RYKEN, Leland Ryken, Dr. Leland Ryken, Leland Dr. Ryken, gen. ed. Leland Ryken, Leland Ryken - General Editor

Image credit: Zondervan Publishing House

Series

Christian Guides to the Classics

Reading the Bible as Literature

Works by Leland Ryken

Popular Recent

Dictionary of Biblical Imagery (1998) — Editor — 863 copies

Worldly Saints: The Puritans As They Really Were (1990) 715 copies

How to Read the Bible as Literature (1985) 687 copies

The Word of God in English: Criteria for Excellence in Bible Translation (2002) 587 copies

Words of Delight: A Literary Introduction to the Bible (1988) 438 copies

The Christian Imagination: The Practice of Faith in Literature and Writing (Writers' Palette Book) (1981) 380 copies

Effective Bible Teaching (1988) — Author — 350 copies

The Literary Study Bible: ESV - English Standard Version (2007) 316 copies

Preach the Word: Essays on Expository Preaching: In Honor of R. Kent Hughes (2007) — Editor — 277 copies

40 Favorite Hymns on the Christian Life: A Closer Look at Their Spiritual and Poetic Meaning (2019) 254 copies

Understanding English Bible Translation: The Case for an Essentially Literal Approach (2009) 233 copies

Choosing a Bible: Understanding Bible Translation Differences (2005) 202 copies

J. I. Packer: An Evangelical Life (1805) 194 copies

The Liberated Imagination: Thinking Christianly About the Arts (Wheaton Literary Series) (1895) 191 copies

A Complete Literary Guide to the Bible (1993) — Editor — 172 copies

Ryken's Bible Handbook (2005) 164 copies

Redeeming the Time: A Christian Approach to Work and Leisure (1995) 162 copies

Realms of Gold: The Classics in Christian Perspective (Wheaton Literary Series) (2000) 126 copies

Pastors in the Classics: Timeless Lessons on Life and Ministry from World Literature (2012) 121 copies

The Legacy of the King James Bible: Celebrating 400 Years of the Most Influential English Translation (2011) 120 copies

The Soul in Paraphrase: A Treasury of Classic Devotional Poems (2018) 110 copies

Work & Leisure in Christian Perspective (1988) 101 copies

A Reader's Guide Through the Wardrobe: Exploring C. S. Lewis Classic Story (2005) 100 copies

Literature of the Bible (1974) 96 copies

Culture in Christian Perspective: A Door to Understanding and Enjoying the Arts (Critical Concern Book) (1986) 91 copies

How Bible Stories Work: A Guided Study of Biblical Narrative (Reading the Bible As Literature) (1750) 85 copies

The ESV and the English Bible Legacy (2011) 79 copies

A Christian Guide to the Classics (2015) 78 copies

Milton's Paradise Lost (Christian Guides to the Classics) (1900) 77 copies

A Complete Handbook of Literary Forms in the Bible (2014) 68 copies

Windows to the World: Literature in Christian Perspective (1985) 67 copies

Homer's The Odyssey (2013) 64 copies

Recovering the lost art of reading : a quest for the true, the good, and the beautiful (2021) 57 copies

Triumphs of the Imagination: Literature in Christian Perspective (1979) 55 copies

Bible Translation Differences: Criteria For Excellence In Reading And Choosing A Bible Translation (2004) 54 copies

Literary introductions to the books of the Bible (2015) 54 copies

Shakespeare's Macbeth (Christian Guides to the Classics) (1723) 54 copies

Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress (Christian Guides to the Classics) (2014) 53 copies

Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter (Christian Guides to the Classics) (2013) 49 copies

Dickens's Great Expectations (Christian Guides to the Classics) (2014) 42 copies

A Reader's Guide to Caspian: A Journey into C. S. Lewis's Narnia (2008) 42 copies

The Devotional Poetry of Donne, Herbert, and Milton (Christian Guides to the Classics) (2014) 38 copies

Words of Life: A Literary Introduction to the New Testament (1987) 37 copies

Jesus the Hero: A Guided Literary Study of the Gospels (Reading the Bible As Literature) (2016) 35 copies

Sweeter Than Honey, Richer Than Gold: A Guided Study of Biblical Poetry (2015) 35 copies

Augustine's Confessions (Christian Guides to the Classics) (2015) 33 copies

Short Sentences Long Remembered: A Guided Study Proverbs and Other Wisdom Literature (Reading the bible as literature) (2016) 33 copies

Letters of Grace & Beauty: A Guided Literary Study of New Testament Epistles (2016) 26 copies

The Heart in Pilgrimage: A Treasury of Classic Devotionals on the Christian Life (2022) 25 copies

Symbols and Reality: A Guided Study of Prophecy, Apocalypse, and Visionary Literature (Reading the bible as literature) (2016) 25 copies

The New Testament in Literary Criticism (Library of Literary Criticism) (1984) 25 copies

Shakespeare's Hamlet (Christian Guides to the Classics) (2014) 23 copies

Poetry of Redemption: An Illustrated Treasury of Good Friday and Easter Poems (2023) 20 copies

Journey to Bethlehem: A Treasury of Classic Christmas Devotionals (2023) 18 copies

Apocalyptic Vision in "Paradise Lost" (1970) 11 copies

A Treasury of Thanksgiving: Illustrated Poetry, Prose, and Praise (2023) 5 copies

Formas literárias da Bíblia (1905) 4 copies

The Bible as Literature: Theory and Methodology (Supplemental Readings), BIB 5033 2 copies

Triumphs of the Imagination 1 copy

40 Favorite Hymns of the Christian Life 1 copy

Uma introdução literária à Bíblia (Portuguese Edition) 1 copy

The ESV & the English Bible Legacy 1 copy

Words of Delight A literary introduction to the bible 1 copy

Shakespeare Handbook 1 copy

The Soul in Paraphrase 1 copy

40 Favorite hymns for the Christian Year - A Closer Look at Their Spiritual and Poetic Meaning 1 copy

Literary Introduction to the books of the Bible 1 copy

Word of God in English: criteria for excellence in Bible translation 1 copy

BIBLE TRANSLATION MAGAZINE: All Things Bible Translation (January 2011) 1 copy

The Bible as Literature: A Brief History 1 copy

The Literary Influence of the Bible 1 copy

Bridging the History Gap 1 copy

Unlocking the Bible's Library 1 copy

The Literature of the New Testament 1 copy

Work Explorer

Associated Works

On Reading Well: Finding the Good Life through Great Books (2018) — Foreword — 666 copies

Understanding Scripture: An Overview of the Bible's Origin, Reliability, and Meaning (2012) — Contributor — 203 copies

Liberal Arts for the Christian Life (2012) — Contributor, some editions — 117 copies

Making Higher Education Christian: The History and Mission of Evangelical Colleges in America (1987) — Contributor — 16 copies

Tagged

art (32) arts (35) Bible (231) Bible as literature (33) Bible Reference (67) Bible Study (101) Bible Translation (63) Biblical Studies (99) Bibliology (43) biography (43) books about books (32) Christian (101) Christian living (51) Christianity (94) Church History (82) culture (22) dictionary (53) education (30) ESV (30) Hermeneutics (151) history (70) interpretation (21) Kindle (34) literary criticism (65) literature (212) Logos (74) non-fiction (112) poetry (34) Preaching (71) Puritan (21) Puritans (82) reading (46) reference (147) religion (60) Scripture (37) teaching (41) Theology (137) to-read (191) translation (46) writing (21)

Common Knowledge

Birthdate: 1942-05-17
Gender: male
Nationality: USA
Country (for map): USA
Birthplace: New Sharon, Iowa, USA
Places of residence: New Sharon, Iowa, USA (birth)
Pella, Iowa, USA
Wheaton, Illinois, USA
Education: Central College-now Central University of Iowa (B.A., 1964)
University of Oregon (Ph.D., 1968)
Occupations: Professor (Literature|Wheaton College|Wheaton, Illinois, USA)
Relationships: Ryken, Philip Graham (son)
Organizations: Modern Language Association
Milton Society of America
Evangelical Theological Society
Conference on Christianity and Literature

Members

Reviews

A Christian Guide to the Classics by Leland Ryken

Tedious. Repetitive. Inspiring.

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Nickdemore | Apr 13, 2024 |

The Legacy of the King James Bible by Leland Ryken

The Legacy of the King James Bible honors the 400th anniversary of the KJB’s publication by telling its story—a drama that starts with the pioneering work of William Tyndale.

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phoovermt | 2 other reviews | Mar 28, 2023 |

The Legacy of the King James Bible: Celebrating 400… by Leland Ryken

A good history of a Bible produced in 1611 which set the standards for translations for over 4 centuries. Attempting to maintain the balance between the zealotry of KJV supporters & zealotry of KJV haters, Mr. Leland manages to stay the course with the history & influence upon the English speaking world.

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walterhistory | 2 other reviews | Jan 5, 2023 |

40 Favorite Hymns on the Christian Life: A Closer… by Leland Ryken

The author takes 40 hymn texts and studies them from a poetic standpoint. Each reading concludes with a scripture. I enjoyed this book but, although it’s formatted as a devotional, it’s too academic for me to think of it as a devotional. Still enjoyable to read and helpful to think through the richness of the older hymns which are at risk of dying out.

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skayw | Mar 20, 2022 |

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