Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.
The chronology of the Kings of Judah and Israel can be divided into three periods with clearly defined boundaries. The first period begins with the death of Solomon and the accessions of Rehoboam in the south (Judah) and Jeroboam in the north (Israel). It ends with the deaths of Ahaziah…
Most modern people regard the arts as essentially decorative. They are hardly very important, as compared to business, politics, or religion. Yet, from a Biblical point of view, the arts lie close to the heart of human life. The universe that God created is itself an artistic masterpiece by the…
Before we move into a detailed survey of the history and chronology of the kings of Israel and Judah, let us review the chronological information that leads from creation to the kingdom. This will be helpful both to new readers of these essays, and a reminder for those who have…
We have completed our overall survey of Biblical chronology, and now turn to a detailed examination of the Biblical information regarding the chronology of Israel’s kings. The first piece of chronological information we have regarding Israel’s kings is very cryptic, and it serves as an guide to the interpretation of…
Jonathan Z. Smith, To Take Place: Toward Theory in Ritual (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1987). Reviewed by Peter J. Leithart. The philosophes of the 18th century often attacked Christendom using the tools of anthropology and comparative religion. Rousseau contrasted the idyllic equality of primitive, natural peoples with the bondage…
Valerie I. J. Flint, The Rise of Magic in Early Medieval Europe (Princeton University Press, 1991). Reviewed by Peter J. Leithart. Valerie I. J. Flint, Professor of History at the University of Auckland, New Zealand, is refreshingly candid about her reasons for undertaking a study of The Rise of Magic…
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Tyler Mayfield’s monograph, Literary Structure and Setting in Ezekiel , focuses on the literary markers on the surface of the text of Ezekiel, rather than on conceptual or genre, as a guide for literary structure of the book. He argues that the book divides into 13 units, each of which…
Klaus Wengst argues that the harlot city of Revelation can “only” be Rome (contribution to Politics and Theopolitics in the Bible and Postbiblical Literature , 191). He follows with all sorts of good reasons to doubt that conclusion. For starters, he point out the odd doubling: The beast on which…
Amos warns Israel about her injustices. If they do not seek Yahweh, He will consume them, those who “turn justice to wormwood and cast righteousness to the earth” (5:1-7). Amos supports this with a description of God’s creative power (vv. 8-9). The declaration of God’s creative power is complexly structured.…
Everyone who reads Paul knows that Abram believed God and it was counted to him as righteousness (Genesis 15:6). What is not evident in Paul, but certainly assumed by him, is the specific promise that Abram believed: “So shall your descendants be” (Genesis 15:5). How shall Abram’s descendants be? Yahweh…
Jesus is justified by the Spirit in His resurrection. Though all the courts of mankind condemned Him to death, the Father reverses the sentence and therefore the verdict by raising Him. That is also the vindication of Jesus’ followers. Peter, James, John, and the rest had been groping toward the…
A thought inspired by a sermon from Pastor Rich Lusk. Jesus tells His disciples that they disciple the nations by baptizing and teaching the nations His commands. That is precisely the sequence of Jesus’ own life: Jesus moves out of the wilderness, crosses the Jordan in baptism, sets up a…
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