Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.
Mrs. Marguerite Lane of Grand Rapids writes to ask if I have ever noticed a correlation between the eight beatitudes of Matthew 5 and the eight woes of Matthew 23. I confess that I have not. A glance at various commentators reveals that such a correspondence does not seem to…
1. The words of Agur, the son of Jakeh, the burden. The man declares to Ithiel, to Ithiel and Ucal: 2. Surely I am more stupid than any other man, And I do not have the understanding of a man. 3. And I have not learned wisdom, But I have…
Psalm 137 is widely regarded as one of the meanest of the imprecatory psalms. Certainly as we read it it is seems to be a song of pure vengeance. The exiles in Babylon, in grief over the judgment that Babylon has brought upon them, pray for the destruction of that…
In the Levitical law, the priests received two particular portions of each peace offering: the "wave offering" of the breast and the "heave offering" (or better, "contribution") of the right thigh. The purpose of this essay is to attempt to determine the reason why the second of these, the thigh,…
The story of Jesus’ visit, early in His ministry, to the synagogue in His home town of Nazareth is recorded for us in Luke 4:16-30. You may remember that Jesus read from Isaiah about how the Messiah would preach the gospel, care for the poor, work miracles, and bring in…
(The essay that follows concerns a rather touchy subject: how the Lord’s Supper is to be done. I am not writing to insult or offend, but to challenge. To that end I have not "held back" but have "gone ahead" and said what I think needs to be said —…
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Knowing follows the “dynamic of dance,” writes Esther Lightcap Meek ( A Little Manual for Knowing , 79). The knower and the reality to be known are partners, each one off balance at a particular moment but sustaining “an ongoing, overall balance” (80), engaged in a personal etiquette of overture…
The essays on art collected in Tikkun Olam originated from Gillian Rose’s “broken middle,” writes editor Jason Goroncy. He includes a long quotation from a Rowan Williams essay on Job to explain. Williams writes, “Mere resignation is a betrayal; structuring and explanation is a blasphemy. What is left, then, if…
Jesus’ letter to Pergamum mentions Balaam and Balak (Revelation 2:14), and that is a signal that the whole message is running along the lines of Numbers 22-25. The death of the high priest is a sacrificial moment in the life of Israel. According to the rules of the cities of…
It’s easy for Christians to become frustrated with the state of the world, but frustration is ineffective and perhaps dangerous public stance. Over at Comment , I prescribe an antidote to frustration - a public stance infused with the theological virtues.
In a highly provocative VT article from 2009, Leigh M. Trevaskis points to the emphasis on Sabbath in Leviticus 23 and 25. All but one festival day is either on a date that is a multiple of seven, or on the day just after. The exception is the day of…
Leigh Trevaskis offers an intriguing, helpful discussion of the man stoned for blasphemy in Leviticus 24. Recent commentators have emphasized the “mixed” character of the blasphemer - son of an Israelite mother and an Egyptian father. While acknowledging the importance of that feature of the story, Trevaskis thinks that the…
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