Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.
After the identification of the recipients of his letter at the beginning of Revelation, John gives a benediction that resembles the benedictions of the Pauline letters. He pronounces grace/favor and peace, grace and favor that lead to peace, grace that leads to fullness and harmony that is the biblical definition…
Throughout the latter half of 1-2 Samuel, Saul and David are locked in hand-to-hand combat. It seems an unequal contest. All the heavy artillery is on Saul's side. To understand the full scope of the conflict, we need to back up to the beginning of the book. Prior to Saul's…
Last week, I lectured at Ostrog Academy in Ostrog, Ukraine, and at a pastors' conference in Kyiv. The latter was co-sponsored by Trinity House and the Alliance of Reformed Churches in Ukraine. I offer my impressions of Ukraine this morning at Firstthings.com .
Why do I bristle when I see someone with white wires hanging from his ears, flipping through what must be a million songs downloaded onto his iPod? No doubt, it’s the threat of the new. I've only recently begun carrying a cell phone, and now I hear tell of compact…
Judah is in terrible shape (Isaiah 57). Yahweh told Israel to worship Him only at the temple, but the people worship on every hill and under every green and leafy tree. He commanded them to worship Him alone, but they are devoted to many gods. Worshipers set up their beds…
Like any great writer, the Lord foreshadows late happenings in early happenings. Like many greater writers, the Lord ends where he begins, returning to a glorified Edenic city-sanctuary at the end of his cosmic story. The Lord writes with history, real people and events, not merely with words. But His…
Showing page 187 of 309
Showing page 42 of 43
Ezekiel says that Yahweh deals with Judah so that Judah will know that He is Lord. When there are bodies scattered on the high places, then Israel will know that Yahweh is Lord (Ezekiel 6:13-14). When Judah is devastated and the Lord shows no pity, then Judah will know that…
My wish list for Catholics is terribly old-fashioned and terribly assertive. There’s hardly space here to defend my positions or thoroughly critique the Catholic position. So, this may end up sounding like a drive-by shooting or a childish tantrum. I trust that I can formulate my wish list with enough…
Aren Wilson-Wright examines the elements of “Northwest Semitic combat myth” in the theme verses of the Song of Songs (8:6b-7a). I have my doubts about the presence of the combat myth, but even within a strictly biblical frame, his observations illuminate the text. He points out, for instance, that 8:6b…
Stephen Turley ends The Ritualized Revelation of the Messianic Age by elaborating the point made in his title: “for early Pauline communities, rituals and beliefs were in fact irreducible to one another. As such, our ritual reading of Paul provides an exegetical corrective to the traditional relation posited between theology…
Tyler Atkinson uses Bonaventure and Luther as his primary interlocutors in his study of the “work ethic” of Ecclesiastes, Singing at the Winepress . The two giants offer quite divergent readings of the book. For Bonaventure, the vanity of the world encourages withdrawal; for Luther, though, the goal is to…
In his contribution to Reformation Readings of Paul , David C. Fink argues that Luther's doctrine of justification was an effort to “grapple with the great commandment” to love God (45). Luther vehemently rejected the medieval notion that faith as the material cause had to be formed by love as…
Showing page 357 of 2212
Your weekly digest for all things Theopolis.
