Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.
Integrity seems to have two meanings. It can mean the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles. A man of integrity is a person of honour, rectitude and probity, truthful and trustworthy. Integrity also describes a state – the quality of being whole and undivided. If things are…
Get the Psalm 32 Translation here Psalm 32 is the first part of Ps. 32-33, ending with a call to praise that is answered by what follows. Ultimately the psalm needs to be considered as a whole, but what we call Psalm 32 does have its own structure and logic,…
You wouldn’t hit a man with glasses would ya? No, of course not. I’d hit him with a bat. In our culture of frivolity it is tempting for Christians to think that solemnity should be our defining attribute. The coarseness of the world impedes us from enjoying any sort of…
Taking a cue in my last post from early Christian apologetics, I suggested that if we wish to articulate and defend a doctrine of creation ex nihilo in contemporary theology, we would do well to offer a thick description of Yahweh’s divine monarchia (his sole rule or sovereignty). Rather than…
I’m not sure we really understand the insidiousness of unbelief. It is not merely to reject the gospel of Jesus, the existence of a Creator God, or to question biblical morality. At its core, unbelief is ingratitude, and by the very nature of this ingratitude, it must ultimately reject every…
Mark’s narrative of the baptism of Jesus is characteristically brief: “In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And when he came up out of the water, immediately he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit descending on him…
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INTRODUCTION Joash’s story is an ironic tragedy of Shakespearean dimensions. His reign begins well, with a dramatic and surprising renewal of the Davidic line, and he pays his dues by repairing the temple. Before the end of his life, he loots the very temple he has repaired. THE TEXT “In…
2 Kings 11:1: When Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she rose and destroyed all the royal seed. At the beginning, the story of Athaliah appears to be the story of the destruction of the house of David. Athaliah kills all the royal seed, and…
2 Kings 11:3: So Joash was hidden with her in the house of Yahweh six years, while Athaliah was reigning over the land. The story in the sermon today is the story of two kingdoms, two rulers, two reigns. One is open, public, evident to everyone who reads the newspapers.…
Athaliah, daughter of Ahab and Jezebel, knew she had to protect herself. She was related to the Davidic line only by marriage, and knew that many in Judah would be suspicious of her. A live Davidic prince could become the focal point for a revolt that would topple her from…
Jeffrey Knapp suggests that, though Shakespeare was probably raised a Catholic, he chose to conform to the established religion but without taking a high profile at church. In a comment that rings true, Knapp suggests that above all Shakespeare “deplored sectarianism. Shakespeare’s puritanical characters are typically divisive figures, longing for…
Athaliah the murderous mother is undone by Jehosheba the protective mother. To be specific: Athaliah renounces her blood ties with her grandchildren and slaughters the royal seed (2 Kings 11). Jehosheba renounces her blood ties with her own mother, Athaliah, and saves the royal seed. Wicked family disloyalty is undone…
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