Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.
The Blessing of the Father The narrative of the Exodus makes it clear that Yahweh is Israel’s Father. Moses is told to declare to Pharaoh that “Israel is my firstborn son, and I say to you, ‘Let my son go that he may serve me’” (Exodus 4:22-23). In contrast to…
When reading the Old Testament, the believer faces two dilemmas. First, there is a seemingly sharp discontinuity between the universal proclamation of the gospel to the whole earth and God’s singling out of the nation of Israel. Second, the New Testament says of Jesus that “there is no other name…
John 17 contains the longest prayer that we have from Jesus, and it shows us the intimate relationship between the Father and the Son in a way that few passages do. The prayer lays out the chiastic pattern noted by Athanasius (God became man so that man could become God),…
The following meditation on the incarnation is paraphrased and quoted from Karl Barth, The Doctrine of Reconciliation (Church Dogmatics, Vol. 4, Part 1) , pp. 185ff. In the incarnation, the eternal Son of God makes His way into a far country, and takes on the form of a servant. “But…
Peter says "baptism saves you" (1 Peter 3:21). Does the New Testament teach that "baptism justifies you"? I think the answer is Yes. That's a controversial answer, and demands some defense and explanation, but first some critical qualifications. No New Testament text states "baptism justifies you," so my argument will…
In his THI article “ Son of David, Son of Abraham ,” Peter Leithart notes that Matthew's genealogy “contains a summary of redemptive history.” This statement is only too true and one that deserves further elucidation. Biblos genese ō s. The first two words of Matthew's Gospel are usually translated…
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Matthew 19: What therefore God has joined together, let no man put asunder. This is the marriage supper of the lamb. Here at this table, Jesus our Lord and Husband, our Lordly Husband, meets with us to communion with us, and gives Himself to us. At this table, we are…
Ephesians 5:25: Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her; that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water by the word. We’ve been talking this morning about the permanence of marriage and about divorce, and this…
Jesus deals with divorce and remarriage, but His central teaching about marriage is that “From the beginning it was not so.” His point is not mainly to narrow the escape route from marriage. He commands husbands and wives to live together in a way that prevents divorce from ever arising…
Strangely, Paul says in Ephesians 5:13 that “everything that becomes visible is light.” Whatever could that mean? Hamann thought he knew: “Imagery comprises the entire realm of human knowledge and happiness. The first explosion of creation, and the first impression of its historian; the first manifestation and the first enjoyment…
Rosenstock-Huessy finds himself “hurt, swayed, shaken, elated, disillusioned, shocked, comforted,” and incapable of refraining from speech: “To write a book is no luxury. It is a means of survival.” Behind Rosenstock-Huessy stands Hamann, and behind Hamann is Elihu of the book of Job, whose words Hamann uses as the epigram…
Our obsessiveness about exercise and health seems supremely anti-gnostic. But the opposite is the case. Consider the imagery: “Buns of steel” and “Abs of iron” and “Cable-like biceps.” The bodybuilder aims to exercise himself to robothood. His goal to exercise until he’s elevated to a state beyond human. He wants…
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