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

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Biblical Horizons

The Sin of Ham and the Curse of Canaan, Part 1

The history of the sin of Ham and the curse of Canaan comes in the middle of the Generations of Noah, a section of Genesis that begins at Genesis 6:9 and extends to the closing notice, Genesis 11:9. To understand the story better, it is necessary to get in mind…

by James B. JordanJune 3, 1997
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Eucharist

You and Your Son and Daughter: Christ’s Communion with Young Children

This paper was written to persuade people who were members of the Presbyterian Church in America. It should be accessible to anyone who believes in baptizing infants–especially to those who consider themselves a part of the Reformation Tradition. References to “our Confession” or “our standards” invoke the Westmeinster Confession of…

by Mark HorneJune 3, 1997
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Baptism

The Westminster Standards & Sacramental Efficacy

Version 1.2 I write this brief essay in order to address a problem I have encountered. I keep reading explanations of doctrine of the sacraments fundamentally empty of the content which was once held by virtually all Reformed confessions and formulations. Furthermore, I read explanations and commentaries on the Westminster…

by Mark HorneJune 3, 1997
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Biblical Chronology

John Sailhamer Weighs In, Part 2

We continue our analysis of John Sailhamer’s book *Genesis Unbound: A Provocative New Look at the Creation Account* (Multnomah Books, 1996), which argues that Genesis 1:2ff. is not about the creation of the whole world, but about the preparation of the Land of Eden, which is also the Promised Land.…

by James B. JordanMay 31, 1997
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Matthew

Toward a Chiastic Understanding of the Gospel According to Matthew, Part 2

III. Death of God’s Firstborn in the real Egypt: This huge chiasm has as its center the betrayal of Peter, as the leader of the disciples himself rejects Jesus. Peter holds an oficial position as high priest among the disciples of the incarnate Lord. His rejection of Jesus is the…

by James B. JordanMay 31, 1997
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Eucharist

A Response to Rev. Bacon’s Argument that Manna was not a Sacrament

I wrote a response to Rev. Richard Bacon’s tract, What Mean Ye by This Service , a copy of which I borrowed from the library at Covenant Theological Seminary. However, I recently discovered that a new appendix was added to the version available on the Blue Banner’s web page. This…

by Mark HorneMay 29, 1997

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Literature

The Dancing Dead

A Swiss visitor to London in 1599 saw a performance of Julius Caesar, and wrote: “On September 21st after lunch, about two o’clock, I and my party crossed the water, and there in the house with the thatched roof witnessed an excellent performance of the tragedy of the first Emperor…

May 27, 2006

Philip the Chancellor

According to Stephen Duffy, Philip, Chancellor of the University of Paris, was responsible for elaborating the theorem of the supernatural. He claims that during the Pelagian controversy Augustine had left various problems hanging: “How can one be bound to do something not in one’s power? Can the virtues of unbelievers…

May 27, 2006

Surnaturel

In his 1993 book, The Dynamics of Grace , Stephen J. Duffy offers a superb brief summary of de Lubac’s thesis in Surnaturel . According to de Lubac’s history, “Neither the Fathers nor the great schoolmen ever considered a purely natural human destiny a possibility. Their focus was on one,…

May 25, 2006

Raunch Culture Revisited

On NPR this morning, Frank Deford described how, instead of bringing feminine modesty and delicacy to the world of sports as Title IX advocates might have hoped, women athletes have adopted the culture of their male counterparts. Recent hazing incidents have brought attention to a much more extensive problem. On…

May 24, 2006

Natural/Supernatural in Adamic Covenant

Mark Karlberg charges that Francis Junius introduced a natural/supernatural scheme into the Reformed doctrine of the covenant of works. In Karlberg’s summary, “The covenant, according to Junius, was established with our first parents by God the Father in the love of his Son. It held out the promise of supernatural…

May 24, 2006

Double Adamic Covenant

Many of the Protestant Scholastics argued that a covenant of some sort is “natural” to man, not a “supernatural” addition to a pure, non-covenantal existence. But the “natural” covenant is often distinguished from the specific terms of the covenant of works, the prohibition of the tree of knowledge. Heidegger fulsomely…

May 23, 2006

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