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History

Congregational Theocracy: That Time Theocrats Ran Puritan New England

Timon Cline wrote recently that “theonomists” didn’t run Puritan New England. 1 He is correct, in his major thesis, that the claim that “Puritanism and the natural law tradition are antithetical” is “wildly ahistorical.” Mr. Cline demonstrates that Puritans repeatedly extolled natural law. Besides the Puritan sources Mr. Cline mustered,…

by John CarpenterAugust 9, 2022
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Mark

The Land of the Walking Trees

The Church is the land of the walking trees. In Mark’s Gospel, the identity of Jesus is slowly and progressively revealed. Though St. Mark announces at the beginning of his narrative that Jesus Christ is “the Son of God” (1:1), this is a reality that must be spoon-fed to His…

by Jackson ShepardAugust 4, 2022
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Ephesians

The Significance of Ephesians (with a comparison to Romans)

All Scripture is of ultimate significance as the word of God, but it may be helpful to think about what makes a book (in this case, a letter) possibly unique within the canon. In this case, the “general” nature of Ephesians should stand out, but it often is not recognized…

by Mark HorneAugust 2, 2022
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Ecclesiastes

A Time to Kill (Ecclesiastes 3:3)

Where do we draw the lines between what is right and wrong? This question is fundamental to civilization, fundamental to a free society. To put this question in the bluntest and most offense terms: if there is a time to kill — which Solomon says there is — whom shall…

by Ralph Allan SmithJuly 28, 2022
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Biblical Horizons

Broadening Our View of the Trinity

This article was originally posted in May of 1994. We speak of God as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The early Church tended to speak of Him as Father, Word, and Spirit. In this short essay, I want to suggest some other ways to think of the Trinity, ways that…

by James B. JordanJuly 26, 2022
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Jonah

Journeying Prophets in Kings

Jonah’s Home The story of JONAH belongs in the book of KINGS. JONAH balances the story of the unnamed Judean prophet (1K13) in KINGS’ literary structure. Each story describes a journeying prophet that crosses land or sea to confront a wayward king. The two stories are located during the reigns…

by Scott FairbanksJuly 21, 2022

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Mathematical Art

The TLS reviewer of a recent Mondrian exhibit observes that Mondrian spent the final years of his life attempting to “eradicate any trace of the organic world from his art and surroundings.” Not surprisingly, he was unsuccessful: “Mondrian would remain vexed until the very end by what he regarded as…

July 16, 2014

Spenser’s sources

Edmund Spenser’s style in the Fairie Queene was odd even when he first wrote it, and Spenser scholars have long argued the whys and wherefores. David Scott Wilson-Okamura argues that, unique as it was, Spenser’s style has sources both in contemporary poetry and antiquity. According to the TLS reviewer of…

July 16, 2014

Dumas Pere

The father of Alexandre Dumas was a man of legendary strength, courage, and energy, and his life is now the subject of a biography, The Black Count by Tom Reiss. The engaging TLS review sums up the influence that Dumas pere had on his famous son: “Dumas’s novels are deeply…

July 16, 2014

Song of Paradise

Yael Klangwisan’s Earthing the Cosmic Queen offers a couple of distinct theoretical frameworks for interpreting the Song of Songs. The first is summarized by the acronym “Pardes,” Paradise, which occurs at Song 4:13. Drawing from rabbinic hermeneutics, she proposes to read the text as it stands ( Peshat ), to…

July 16, 2014

Singing Witness

Christians in the US are entering a period of crisis that will lead to martyrdom. Perhaps the martyrdom will be comparatively mild: No pyres or firing squads, but only mockery, slander, ostracism. But it will still be martyrdom, that is, the opportunity - the privilege - to witness faithfully under…

July 16, 2014

Sacrificial Enthronement

When Noah ( noach ) brings the ark to its resting place ( nuach ) on Ararat, he offers an ascension that brings a resting ( niychoach ) aroma to Yahweh (Genesis 8:21). The aroma “pacifies” Yahweh, but there seems to be another dimension as well. When Yahweh is enthroned…

July 16, 2014

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