Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.
In a February blog post for the Theopolis Institute, Benoît Engel offers a thought-provoking challenge to the widely accepted five-discourse structure of Matthew’s Gospel, proposing a sixth discourse in Matthew 21:28–22:14 to reframe the Gospel’s chiastic center. As someone deeply invested in Matthew’s literary design—explored in my book Reading Matthew,…
Avoid foolish disputes, genealogies, contentions, and strivings about the law, for they are unprofitable and useless. Titus 3:9 Out of a deep love and care for the church, Paul tells Titus and those in the church to avoid four specific things: foolish disputes, genealogies, contentions, and strivings about the law.…
Theopolis publishes many polemics, especially on the Sacraments. This piece does not necessarily reflect the views of Theopolis, her board, or her editors. -JW Whoever touches the dead body of any person shall be unclean seven days.He shall cleanse himself with the water on the third day and on the…
There is in the United States and the Western World some sort of religious revival occurring. Gen Z men—males born between ca 1997 and 2012—are flooding back in to churches. USA Today noted that Gen Z men—and to a lesser degree women—attending churches more than their millennial predecessors and they…
The primary task of many Biblical scholars (as they see it) is to explain how and why the Biblical text acquired its final form—i.e., what source material it used, how that material was expanded/redacted, who expanded/redacted it, why they did so, what the weather was like at the time, etc.…
Galatians 5:5-15 For through the Spirit, by faith, we ourselves eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith working through love. You were running well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth? This persuasion is not from…
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Matthew describes two sets of witnesses in the Sanhedrin trial of Jesus.  One is a set of false witnesses, but they fail to bring convincing testimony.  There is a second set of witnesses, two witnesses, who come “later” (v. 60).  These witnesses bring a united testimony, one that passes the…
The priests and elders are sticklers.  They want to convict Jesus and put Him to death.  That’s the goal of the trial.  But they also know that they have to operate according to the rules of justice given in their Torah.  They know they need testimony, and they know that…
On the first Passover, Israel was delivered from the angel of death and separated from Egypt.  In the narrative in Exodus 12-14, the night of Passover continues, narrativally, until the day after the crossing of the sea.  Chronologically, it is not the same night; but in the narrative there is…
The trial and death of Jesus looks like a tragedy, for Him.  It isn’t,  not in the least, and not just because He’s raised from the dead.  He’s no victim of circumstance or fate, but lays down His life for His sheep. But there is tragedy, the tragedy of Israel.…
The Sanhedrin condemns Jesus for claiming that He was able to destroy the temple and rebuild it.  To them, that was equivalent to claiming God’s power, and had to be blasphemy.  Surely Jesus didn’t have that kind of power - never mind that He had spent several years very publicly…
Athanasius argues: The Son assumed flesh, and its terrors, especially the terror of death.  The goal was to overcome death and terror, but the Son did this by suffering those terrors Himself. We will be delivered from death, and not just in the future.  Athanasius points to martyrs to demonstrate…
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