A.2 The Fine Print — What this Book is and what it is not.
How this book came to be
The essays, as presented, are not answers, rather they are examples of how to gather and assess information in a cohesive manner. They provide a starting point, not the endpoint on a given subject. They document my personal odyssey through the Scriptures.
Exact definition of this book
The book is a collection of my personal notes and research on the subjects listed in the table of contents. All opinions expressed in the book are mine, gleaned from years of reading and thinking (except for the quotes). But make no mistake; I am a product of what I read. In addition to reading Scripture, I provided a bibliography to give you, the reader of these notes, a clue as to where I get my ideas.
Who owns the rights to the information in this book
It’s complicated. In some cases, the material in my notes are obvious quotes from Scripture, or a paraphrase or an implied statement from Scripture. In general, I like to use NIV. The publishers of NIV own the copyright to that data.
In some cases, there are quotes in these notes from people I respect. The quotes come from internet scraping (locate, copy and paste) into this set of notes. It is important for me to say I do not have to agree with somebody’s idea to respect their idea. Accuracy of the quote is dependent upon the internet sources and my personal belief the quote properly represents the cited sources viewpoint. I tried to find accurate sources. I am comfortable with the results. There may be mistakes, but none that I am aware of… The final thought on this matter? Trust but verify. These are notes, not a term paper or a thesis.
The rest of the text — These notes and thoughts were collected for my personal study; they are my opinion on the topic. The 16-chapter document you have in your hands are my personal notes. They have been reproduced and shared with others as a tool to facilitate the study of Scripture at no cost to the user except for the cost of a blank 3-ring binder, some printer paper, and some printer ink. I have no interest in deriving income from the reproduction and distribution of my personal notes. Reproduction of my notes for use in the class is accomplished by the reader on their personal printer.
However, I request all users of this material to refrain from modifying or misrepresenting the information in this document. An official copyrighted PDF version of my notes resides on my laptop. The official copyrighted PDF version resides no place else on the face of this earth. This official copyrighted PDF version is protected using a simple concept. I emailed it to Pepper. This provides a date and timestamp for the official version verifiable by requesting Gmail to validate the transmission date, time stamp, and the attached PDF.
Reproduction rules of engagement The official version of my notes can be reproduced for use as a bible study aid with e-mail permission from Dan Livingston. Just ask me.