Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.
What shall we say then? Is there injustice on God’s part? By no means! For he says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” So then it depends not on human will or exertion, but on…
A hundred years ago, William Warley signed a contract to buy a house in Louisville, Kentucky from Charles Buchanan, a white man. Before closing the sale, Warley, who was black, learned that the lot was subject to a city ordinance barring blacks from occupying the premises if most of the…
I concluded the first essay on this topic by saying that I would introduce three books about Shakespeare and the Bible, but I decided to introduce four instead. The three books become four are: Naseeb Shaheen, Biblical References in Shakespeare’s Plays (London: Associated University Presses, 1999) ; Hannibal Hamlin, The…
My children attend a classical Christian school, situated in the independent “free church” evangelical tradition. Over the past few years they have been growing in their acquaintance with the world of Homer, Plato, Virgil, and Livy. They enjoy it, and I envy it. The school is a great school. My…
The Prodigal Son parable (Luke 15) has been a favorite of liberal theologians for a couple of centuries. It seems to be a parable designed for liberal sensibilities: An indulgent, accepting Father; forgiveness extended without a cross; a surly older brother who might represent the "conservative" face of religion who…
“I want now to tell you, gentlemen, whether you care to hear it or not, why I could not even become an insect. I tell you solemnly, that I have many times tried to become an insect. But I was not equal even to that. I swear, gentlemen, that to…
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Antiracism has become, as John McWhorter pointed out in 2015, America’s new religion. It has its holidays, its saints and martyrs, its liturgical processions and gestures, its symbols and sacraments, its Scriptures and sermonizers, its modes of confession and almost-absolution, its eschatological hope that America will, somehow and someday, fix…
It seems the United States has gone mad. For a couple of months, we all stayed home, terrified by a virus that is a serious threat to very few of us. Now we're out and about, burning cities and storming public buildings and businesses. My little hometown is under a…
Thomas Hamilton ( Exodus ) describes the ephod of Aaron: It “is shaped like an apron encircling the body and covers the loins (maybe “from waist to thigh). It is kept in position on the body by means of two shoulder pieces (v. 7) and a fastening band (v. 8).”…
Since the coronavirus pandemic started, people have debated whether or not COVID-19 is "just" a nasty form of the flu or if it's far worse. We’ve heard horror stories about the horrific effects of COVID-19, as if to contrast this deadly virus with influenza. Both sides seem to assume that…
Yesterday, I preached the first in a series of sermons on liturgical music. Here's a snippet of the sermon. We’ve all been swept away by music. Maybe it was a live performance by a favorite band or of a favorite symphony. Perhaps it happens while you’re fixing dinner and Alexa…
"Bring near" Aaron, Yahweh tells Moses (Exodus 28:1). The verb is the hiphil of qarab , the root of qorban , one of the general Hebrew terms for "sacrifice" or "offering" (cf. Leviticus 1:1-3). Aaron is separated from the sons of Israel like an animal separated from the herd, separated…
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