Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.
Mark Horne has done a good job elucidating how martyrdom paves the way for revival and success of Christ’s kingdom in the world, just as it also can bring more hardship and suffering. The diverging wheat and tares both growing up together, both benefitting from the watering of blood on…
For Part 1, click HERE . Anyone who has read James B. Jordan’s Through New Eyes: Developing a Biblical View of the World and appreciated it as a revelation of how God communicates in symbols and types—both in His Word and in the created order—understands what it is like to…
Abel was the first martyr in history. There is no evading this. Jesus pairs him with a murdered prophet (Matthew 23:35; 2 Chronicles 24:20-22). Abel’s blood was heard by God (Genesis 4:10), and God responded to the cry by driving out Cain, Abel’s killer, from the eastern borderland near Eden…
Adapted from The Shape of Isaiah: A Covenant-Literary Analysis The prophetic texts are the most difficult parts of the Bible to understand. And when it comes to baffling the reader, they are no respecter of persons, perplexing with their Delphic wiles even the studied scholars. It has been said that…
The subtitle for the 2004 film Dodgeball is “A True Underdog Story.” If the viewer lets the words pass by without a double-take, he or she will likely spend the rest of the movie, which applies the “unlikely teammates make the best teams” trope to the “sport” of dodgeball, asking,…
The book of Ezra gives an almost odd amount of attention to vessels. These holy vessels, whether cups, bowls, or flagons, are either dedicated as tribute or were used in temple service. The two Hebrew words translated as ‘vessel’ in most English translations are used a total of 14 times.…
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Yahweh does many things for the sake of His Name, to maintain a good reputation. This might sound self-focused, as if Yahweh were a particularly large version of the ancient hero. I think something like the opposite is the case. Yahweh shows mercy to Israel, refrains from judging them with…
Yahweh addresses Israel as the “house of Jacob” who is “named Israel” (Isaiah 48:1). They have Yahweh’s name in their mouths in oaths and commemorations (v. 1), but not in truth and righteousness. They have in fact become stiff-necked like the Hebrews who were brought from Egypt; they turn to…
INTRODUCTION Isaiah 48 closes out a section of the prophecy that began in chapter 40. It ends with the warning that “there is no peace for the wicked” (48:22), a warning echoed in 57:1 and again at the end of the book (66:22-24). THE TEXT “Hear this, O house of…
The genealogy of Levi is at the chiastic center of the genealogies of 1 Chronicles 1-9, and at the center of the genealogy of Levi is the description of the Levitical singers (1 Chronicles 6:31-32). Prior to this point, the genealogies move forward in time, from Levi to his sons…
In What Is Called Thinking? (14-15) Heidegger asks what it is that an apprentice cabinet maker learns from his master. He learns skills, but not only that. He gains useful information, but not only that either. Fundamentally, Heidegger says, the apprentice is supposed to learn to think , which means…
From Joseph Ratzinger in Communio: Vol. 1, The Unity of the Church (Ressourcement: Retrieval & Renewal in Catholic Thought) : “The true chance for ecumenism does not lie in revolt against the Church as it is, in a Christianity as free of the Church as possible, but in a deepening…
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