Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.
My copy of Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary (1976: not so new, really) defines obscene as (1) "disgusting to the senses; repulsive" and (2) "abhorrent to morality or virtue; specif: designed to incite lust or depravity." Definitions such as this serve a useful purpose only when there is agreement on what…
An Overview Here begins a series of studies in the Abomination of Desolation, or Desolating Sacrilege. This month and next I shall set out an overview of what I regard as the best interpretation of the phenomenon. Later essays will look at it in more detail. (The original form of…
29. There are three things that are stately in their march, Even four that are stately when they walk: 30. The lion is mighty among beasts And does not turn back before any, 31. The strutting cock, The male goat, And a king with his army around him. 32. If…
We have seen that it is likely that the Artaxerxes of Ezra-Nehemiah is the same as Darius the Great. If this solution be correct, and I think it is, possibly there is another problem in Ezra that can be resolved by it. In Ezra 4:6 we are told that "in…
Czech novelist Milan Kundera, though hardly a household name in the English-speaking world, has achieved a certain notoriety in America in recent years, largely on the strength of the English translation and film version of his novel, The Unbearable Lightness of Being. 1 The Unbearable Lightness of Being — the…
24. Four things are small on the earth, But they are exceedingly wise; 25. The ants are not a strong folk, But they prepare their food in the summer; 26. The coneys are not a mighty folk, Yet they make their houses in the rocks; 27. The locusts have no…
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John the Baptist is like a sacrificial victim, a Passover lamb, innocently slaughtered (Matthew 14). In the next periscope, Jesus performs a food miracle, the first such miracle in Matthew. It is a Passover meal, as well as manna in the wilderness. Following the meal, Jesus’ disciples get into a…
Some observations on the final chapter of Chronicles (2 Chronicles 36). In the previous chapter, the Chronicler records the death of Josiah, which is effectively the end of the Davidic monarchy. Chapter 36 records the rapid disintegration of the kingdom, the brief reigns of his sons, the subjection of Judah…
R. R. Reno offers an incisive analysis of the "rage politics" surrounding the Kavanaugh confirmation. He suggests that it's class rage, focused on sex. That's not a surprise, since the sexual revolution is by far the most enduring legacy of the social revolution at the middle of the last century.…
The Chronicler's account of Josiah's reign is glowingly positive. He seeks Yahweh, purges idolatry from Jerusalem, Judah, and the temple, listens to the word of the Lord, leads a covenant renewal, and throw an unprecedented Passover celebration. But there's a subtle counter-melody running along behind the surface song of triumph.…
I expressed some disagreements and some commendations for Seth Postell's Adam as Israel a few days ago. Here I sum up some more of Postell's insights. 1) He takes the description of the serpent in 3:1 as a positive description: He is "more prudent" (Heb. 'arom ) than all the…
David devotes a great deal of attention to organizing Levitical singers (1 Chronicles 25) and gatekeepers (1 Chronicles 26). Solomon follows David's instructions in setting up these roles at the temple (singers, 2 Chronicles 5:12-23; 9:11; gatekeepers, 2 Chronicles 8:14). Remarkably, after Solomon, these officials virtually drop out of the…
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