Theopolis Logo

Writing

Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.

See all
johann-siemens-epy0gbjzzzu-unsplash
Apologetics

A Sabbath Conversation: How Old is the Earth?

As Adam and Eve walked to the center of the Garden of Eden to meet with the LORD on their first Sabbath they conversed about the origin and age of the earth. Adam: You know, honey, we spent a lot of time yesterday making preparations for our house, and we…

by Jeff MeyersOctober 3, 1997
img_1043
Biblical Horizons

Psalms for Exile: The Narrative Progression in the Fifth Book of the Psalter

Some of our forefathers believed in reading/singing the psalms in order. Today, when the psalms are even used at all, they tend to be used randomly, though sometimes tied to a church calendar or to the pastor’s sermon. The Bible does not bind us to any particular practice, but there…

by James B. JordanSeptember 4, 1997
jordan-wozniak-xp_agmeea6s-unsplash-2
Biblical Chronology

The Anthropomorphic Days of C. John Collins, Part 2

Dr. Collins begins his essay with a brief statement of the Day Age view and then a brief statement of the Six Day view, focussing on the challenge to that view posed by modern "science." He ends this discussion by writing: "Two crucial points are at stake here: first, the…

by James B. JordanSeptember 4, 1997
john-salzarulo-wtjrpjzabcq-unsplash
Biblical Horizons

Paperweights and the Puzzles of Secularism

In his The Construction of Social Reality , Berkeley philosopher John Searle puzzles over the ontology of the products of human construction. Certain things – granite, platypi, weeping willows – occur naturally; while other realities – stone walls, zoos and parks, Chase Manhattan Bank – exist only as products of…

by Peter LeithartAugust 27, 1997
ales-krivec-4mibe6zg5r0-unsplash
Biblical Chronology

The Anthropomorphic Days of C. John Collins, Part 1

In the journal Presbyterion 20 (1994):109-130, published by Covenant Theological Seminary, Dr. C. John Collins sets forth a revision of the Day Age approach in his essay, "How Old Is the Earth? Anthropomorphic Days in Genesis 1:1–2:3." Dr. Collins’s essay has been widely accepted in evangelical Presbyterian circles as an…

by James B. JordanAugust 4, 1997
screenshot-2023-09-04-at-10-37-01-am
Biblical Horizons

The Sin of Ham and the Curse of Canaan, Part 3 (An Exposition of Genesis 9:20-27)

The Righteousness of Shem and Japheth As noted above, the action of Shem and Japheth was purely symbolic. They did not need to cover Noah with a garment, for he was already covered by the tent. Their action was a symbolic affirmation of Noah’s authority, a symbolic rejection of Ham’s…

by James B. JordanAugust 4, 1997

Showing page 254 of 309

See all
See all

Restraining blood

Four angels at the four corners of the land hold back the winds that destroy (Revelation 7:1-3). Altars have corners, and at each corner is a “horn” that “stands” at attention. In the purification offering, blood is smeared on the four horns of the altar, turning the altar into a…

September 2, 2014

Sea-born

In a National Geographic interview , Marcus Rediker explains how ships provided the setting for developing some of the distinctive institutions and ideas of the modern world: “Large northern European seagoing vessels, which emerge in the 16th and 17th centuries, become by the 18th century the most important technology in…

September 2, 2014

Richard III, Black or White

Shakespeare’s Richard III is a black-hearted hunchbacked murderer. But there has been another legend of Richard III, as a gallant ruler, the victim of Tudor propaganda. Over the past century, the white legend has often prevailed over the black. Desmond Seward’s Richard III is mostly black, and that’s because he…

September 2, 2014

Fours

When John ascends to heaven, he sees four ( tessares ) living creatures, and in the scene in heaven they are mentioned five times (4:6, 8; 5:6, 8, 14). Then the Lamb begins to open the seals, and the four living creatures cry out. The sixth seal reveals four angels…

September 1, 2014

Winged Earth

This is an addendum to my reflections on wings a few weeks ago. Israel is sometimes conceived as a four-cornered land (Ezekiel 7:2), modeled after the four-cornered altar (Exodus 27:2; 38:2) or a four-cornered house (Job 1:19). Israelites are priests; their land is an altar where they make their daily,…

September 1, 2014

In God’s Path

Several factors need to be put back into the standard account of the Arab conquests of the seventh and eighth centuries, says Robert Hoyland in his forthcoming In God’s Path . The first is process. Speed plays such a large role in the standard accounts that we miss the variability,…

September 1, 2014

Showing page 538 of 2212

Browse by Category

In Medias Res

Your weekly digest for all things Theopolis.

Donate

Theopolis is nearly 100% donor-supported. Consider joining us on our mission.