Theopolis Logo

Writing

Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.

See all
giammarco-zeh-ljawhtg-unsplash
Biblical Horizons

OPEN BOOK: Views and Reviews

Isaac E. Mozeson, The Word: The Dictionary that Reveals the Hebrew Sources of English (Northvale, NJ: Jacob Aaronson Inc., 1995), 310 pp. Reviewed by James B. Jordan. Once there was only one language in the world, the language God spoke to Adam. At the Tower of Babel, there came to…

by James B. JordanJune 28, 1996
tim-wildsmith-j6jv-mkdzqs-unsplash
Esther

Esther: Historical & Chronological Comments (IV)

2. The Setting of the Book of Esther A. Xerxes (continued from previous issue) Ezra 6:14 says that the Jews finished building "according to the command of the God of Israel and the decree of Cyrus and Darius and Artaxerxes king of Persia." The problem with this verse is that…

by James B. JordanJune 28, 1996
ales-krivec-4mibe6zg5r0-unsplash
Acts

Jesus and Amalek

This essay goes with our previous study of the Amalek pattern back in Biblical Horizons No. 2. Since many do not have this essay, entitled "The Battle of Gog and Magog," let me cite the relevant paragraphs: Note in Genesis 12-15 that Abram moves into the land after escaping Pharaoh…

by James B. JordanJune 28, 1996
aaron-burden-1ebsmyrau-s-unsplash
Proverbs

The Strange Woman

Proverbs 7:6-23 is one of several passages early in the Proverbs in which Solomon warns his son about the wiles and dangers of the "strange woman." It is certainly quite proper to take these as straightforward warnings against sexual sins, and these are certainly warnings that need to be impressed…

by Peter LeithartJune 27, 1996
jan-kahanek-g3o5ztrk2e4-unsplash
Biblical Studies

Some Observations

1. In Luke 4:20 we read that after Jesus finished reading from Isaiah, "the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed upon Him." This is usually taken in a psychological sense: They were amazed at Jesus somehow. I suggest that, as always, a merely psychological reading is a modern…

by James B. JordanMay 28, 1996
tim-wildsmith-j6jv-mkdzqs-unsplash
Esther

Esther: Historical & Chronological Comments (III)

2. The Setting of the Book of Esther Up to now we have assumed what we must prove, that the king in Esther is Darius the Great. While Biblical chronologists have usually taken this position, commentators on the book of Esther have often taken others as the king. One view,…

by James B. JordanMay 28, 1996

Showing page 265 of 309

See all

Showing page 22 of 43

See all

Modernized Primitives

In Saving the Appearances , Owen Barfield describes the consciousness of early humanity as follows: "The human soul may be one of the 'stopping-places' for mana , but what differentiates the primitive mind from ours is, that it conceives itself to be only one of those stopping-places and not necessarily…

April 27, 2018

The Glory of Pigs

There is a glory of the sun, of the moon, and of the stars, Paul says. And star differs from star in glory. He's talking about resurrection, but Joel Salatin ( The Marvelous Pigness of Pigs ) wants to apply the principle to every created thing: "Glory speaks to uniqueness;…

April 27, 2018

Aristotle on Woman

Aristotle taught that women are defective men, with rational and moral capacities inferior to men. This is evident in generation, where the man provides the form, the fertilized seed, while the woman plays a passive role. It's sometimes argued that Aristotle's philosophy of femininity simply reflects his age, with its…

April 26, 2018

I Am

Seven times in John's Gospel, Jesus says "I am" with a predicate: 1)I am the bread of life, 6:35 2) I am the light of the world, 8:12 3) I am the door of the sheep, 10:7 4) I am the good shepherd, 10:14 5) I am the resurrection and…

April 26, 2018

The Narrative of the New Testament Canon

The following is taken, with minor adaptations, from the introduction to my commentary on the Johannine Epistles . The gospel goes to the Jew first. When they resist, Paul turns to the Gentiles, but he hopes by this to provoke the Jews to jealousy, so that in the end Jews…

April 25, 2018

Remaking NYC

In an essay exploring (in typical Marxian fashion) the cultural effects of late capitalism (specifically on architecture), Frederic Jameson tells a fascinating story about the Rockefeller Center, drawing on Robert Fitch's The Assassination of New York . Fitch's story is about the conspiracy to change New York City from a…

April 24, 2018

Showing page 75 of 2212

Browse by Category

In Medias Res

Your weekly digest for all things Theopolis.

Donate

Theopolis is nearly 100% donor-supported. Consider joining us on our mission.