Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.
John 18, 19: Latter Prophets and the Writings John 18 and 19 record the arrest, trial, torture, and death of Jesus as laid out in detail in Isaiah 53. After the Roman soldier pierces Jesus’ side, John quotes Zechariah: “They shall look at him whom they pierced” (Zech 12:10). In…
John 12.12 – John 17: Latter Prophets In the Hebrew Scriptures, Kings is followed by the Latter Prophets. John 12:15 quotes Zechariah 9:9 as having prophesied Jesus’ triumphal entry: “Do not be afraid, O Daughter of Zion; see, your king is coming, seated on a donkey’s colt.” [1] N.T. Wright…
John 6.16-70: Joshua The book of Joshua documents the nation of Israel entering the Promised Land. Consider the order of events: (1) Israel is still receiving the daily miracle of manna; (2) Israel miraculously crosses the Jordan on dry foot; (3) The day after Passover , Israel eats produce of…
Since my educational and professional training have revolved around story and narrative structure, I approach John’s Gospel from a literary and narrative perspective. In doing so, I have noticed structural story patterns and followed them where they seem to lead: the Gospel of John parallels the ordering of the books…
The Mt. Sinai Hospital was neolithic on the black hill of Hollow, New Hampshire. Winter dampened the trees and the wind bit at the sparse branches, the sidewalks and stairs were perilous with soggy leaves, and the dim yellow light cast a pallor upon the milky stone building. Ambling inside…
The Revelation can only be understood in the light of Old Testament symbols and sequences. The same is true of the epistle of Jude, which serves as a blistering hors d’oeuvre to John’s fiery feast. Possibly written by the apostle Judas Thaddaeus (Luke 6:16; Acts 1:13; John 14:22), the epistle…
Showing page 84 of 309
Showing page 7 of 43
I don’t buy everything in Niebuhr’s The Irony of American History , especially his insistence that there is no power without guilt because no exercise of power is “transcendent over interest” (Can a gift be given? Same question). Still, the book is as relevant and important now, perhaps more so,…
A central thesis of Raymond van Dam’s The Roman Revolution of Constantine is that Constantine was obsessed with the issue of succession, and that religious concerns were subordinate to the need for a smooth transition of power. That thesis is, I think, overstated, but van Dam’s book has many virtues…
Naomi’s daughter-in-law, Ruth, is better than seven sons to Naomi (4:15). To underscore this, the book calls Ruth “daughter-in-law” seven times (1:6, 7, 8, 22; 2:20, 22; 4:15). She is the sevenfold daughter, the daughter who brings new life and new creation to Naomi, a new life that her sons…
Psalm 75:7-8: But God is the Judge: He puts down one, and exalts another. For in the hand of the LORD there is a cup, and the wine is red; it is fully mixed, and He pours it out; surely its dregs shall all the wicked of the earth drain…
Worship is an ascension. It always has been. Man’s first sanctuary, the Garden of Eden, was on a high place; Abraham took Isaac to Mount Moriah to offer him to the Lord; when Israel gathered to that same mountain on feast days, they climbed toward the temple singing Psalms of…
This is taken from Leo I, Sermons 73-74. I have cut some sentences and paragraphs, smoothed out the translation at some points, and added a few phrases and sentences to clarify Leo’s thought. During the time between the Lord’s Resurrection and Ascension, God had one aim in view: To teach…
Showing page 1378 of 2212
Your weekly digest for all things Theopolis.
