Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.
The Blessing of the Father The narrative of the Exodus makes it clear that Yahweh is Israel’s Father. Moses is told to declare to Pharaoh that “Israel is my firstborn son, and I say to you, ‘Let my son go that he may serve me’” (Exodus 4:22-23). In contrast to…
When reading the Old Testament, the believer faces two dilemmas. First, there is a seemingly sharp discontinuity between the universal proclamation of the gospel to the whole earth and God’s singling out of the nation of Israel. Second, the New Testament says of Jesus that “there is no other name…
John 17 contains the longest prayer that we have from Jesus, and it shows us the intimate relationship between the Father and the Son in a way that few passages do. The prayer lays out the chiastic pattern noted by Athanasius (God became man so that man could become God),…
The following meditation on the incarnation is paraphrased and quoted from Karl Barth, The Doctrine of Reconciliation (Church Dogmatics, Vol. 4, Part 1) , pp. 185ff. In the incarnation, the eternal Son of God makes His way into a far country, and takes on the form of a servant. “But…
Peter says "baptism saves you" (1 Peter 3:21). Does the New Testament teach that "baptism justifies you"? I think the answer is Yes. That's a controversial answer, and demands some defense and explanation, but first some critical qualifications. No New Testament text states "baptism justifies you," so my argument will…
In his THI article “ Son of David, Son of Abraham ,” Peter Leithart notes that Matthew's genealogy “contains a summary of redemptive history.” This statement is only too true and one that deserves further elucidation. Biblos genese ō s. The first two words of Matthew's Gospel are usually translated…
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Peter Stuhlmacher interprets HILASTERION in Rom 3:25 as the KAPPORET of the ark of the covenant, the place where atonement is made. From the cross on, the place of atonement was no longer in the temple but in Jesus. He links this with the critique of the temple and temple…
There looks to be some chiastic action going on in Romans 3:27-30: A. Where is boasting? Excluded B. By law of works? C. No: Law of faith C. justification is by faith B. not by works of law (reversing word order of previous verse) A. God is God of Jews…
Most commentaries I’ve examined assume that Paul’s discussion of the work of Jesus in Romans 3:21-31 centers in the cross. The reference to blood and to propitiation (or propitiating sacrifice) in v 25 justifies this, but this doesn’t mean that Paul’s focus is exclusively on the cross. Several things support…
Romans 3:21 begins a section where Paul expounds, for the first time in Romans, on the revelation of the righteousness of God. One of the ways to characterize current debates about this passage, and about the righteousness of God and justification in general, is to ask whether this is about…
Romans 3:21 begins a section where Paul expounds, for the first time in Romans, on the revelation of the righteousness of God. One of the ways to characterize current debates about this passage, and about the righteousness of God and justification in general, is to ask whether this is about…
Henry Ansgar Kelly’s Ideas and Forms of Tragedy from Aristotle to the Middle Ages (Cambridge, 1993) is a careful and useful study of the use of the word “tragedy” from the ancients through the 14th century. He narrowly focuses on the uses of the word-group itself, and shows that the…
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