Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.
Evangelistic Message to the Uninformed: 1 Timothy 3.14-16 Even though this is written as a sermon for delivery, and even though it was preached in a homiletics class, I decided I can’t post it as a sermon because it was not truly preached at a place where nonchristians wanted to…
If we only read the Gospels of Mark and Luke, we might get the impression that Jesus’ ascension was on resurrection Sunday. Matthew speaks of going to Galilee but he does not put things into a clear time frame. John shows us that Jesus appeared to the disciples eight days…
The most cursory glance at the history of Western literature reveals that it has been deeply influenced by the Bible. Some of the greatest classics of Western literature draw their plots, characters, and ideas largely from Scripture; Dante’s Divine Comedy and Milton’s Paradise Lost are two of the most notable…
Few themes emerge as profoundly and persistently in the streams of biblical narrative as the conflict between light and darkness, and the juxtaposition of humanity with monstrosity. These themes not only weave through the fabric of Scripture, emerging in stories from Genesis to Revelation, but also stitch together the human…
In John Wenham’s work, Easter Enigma , he devotes an entire chapter to Mary Magdalene, which is rephrased and summarized here. 1 One of the interesting things that Wenham said was that Mary Magdalene was the second “most favored woman in the Bible.” 2 He adds, “Yet apart from a…
God made man to live in a larger relational context, and even in high rebellion, man cannot escape his created nature. Instead, that nature takes revenge on rebellious man. Autonomous and alone, the self craves absolution but recognizes no authority that might give it; it thirsts for glory but rejects…
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The history of the Omrides during the ministry of Elisha takes a curious turn. Instead of confronting the king with his sin, as Elijah generally did, Elisha instead repeatedly gives assistance to the son of Ahab (2 Kings 3; 6-7). Jehoram wavers, sometimes whining, sometimes hostile to Elisha, ultimately respectful.…
Dothan is mentioned in only two places in the Old Testament: Gen 37, at the beginning of the Joseph narrative, and 2 Kings 6, the place where the Aramean king attempts to find Elisha. Jacob sends Joseph to take food to his brothers, and he initially does not find them…
Jacques Ellul helpfully points out that God frightens away the Arameans in 2 Kings 7 by a mere sound, and it is a sound that has no physical cause. God overcomes things that are, Ellul says, through things that are not.
A critical issue throughout 1-2 Kings is the question of who provides bread. Early on, it’s Solomon, whose table overflows with good things and who rules an Israel that is continuously rejoicing and feasting. Kings continue to supply tables after the division of the kingdom, but they are often tables…
Iain Provan points to two entertaining puns in the story of the siege of Samaria in 2 Kings 6-7. The first puns on “lepers” (Heb. MISORAIM) and “Egypt” (Heb. MIZRAIM): The Arameans become frightened by the sound of an army, thinkin that Egyptians are attacking; it’s only lepers, though, scrounging…
In his recent Concordia commentary on Leviticus, John Kleinig gives a good summary of what I think is the best explanation of the blood prohibtiion of Lev 17: “many animists regard blood as the most potent of all ritual substances. The blood of an animal was either drunk or, more…
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