The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. Psalm 18:2 NASB Rock – First, David establishes the idea of security. “The Lord [YHVH] is my rock,” uses the word sela’. YHVH is my…
The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. Psalm 18:2 NASB Rock – If you’re like most English readers, you will think that this is the translation of the Hebrew tsur, the usual…
The Continuing Saga of Theological Mathematics Those who grew up in the Christian Western paradigm (I include myself) find it emotionally difficult to think about divinity in any other terms except the ones defined by the Church. We are so used to considering the words “divine” and “deity” as exclusive markers for “God” that any…
“I love You, O Lord, my strength.” Psalm 18:1 (English version) NASB Strength – The Hebrew word, hezqa, means “strength.” There is no argument about this nor is it unusual. But David often does something with words that make them different, and in this verse, he uses the root hezeq, the only place in Scripture…
If you didn’t have a chance to accompanying the group to Israel in October, you can still listen to all the discussions. CLICK HERE to order your download audio files.
“I love You, O Lord, my strength.” Psalm 18:1 (English version) NASB Love – You would never notice in English, but in Hebrew, this certainly appears to be the wrong word. We would expect ‘ahav, used in Deuteronomy 6:5 and throughout the Tanakh in both commands and descriptions. In fact, ‘ahav is used in all…
if the anointed priest sins so as to bring guilt on the people, then let him offer to the LORD a bull without defect as a sin offering for the sin he has committed. Leviticus 4:3 NASB Lord – Of course, the Hebrew doesn’t say “to the Lord.” We all recognize the circumlocution in this…
While the king was on his couch, my nard gave forth its fragrance. Song of Songs 1:12 JPS Was on his couch – Is exegesis art or science? Or maybe both? The historical-critical method of exegetical analysis will inform you that this verse employs a Hebrew term (meisev) that describes a couch used for reclining…
But our God is in the heavens; He does whatever He pleases. Psalm 115:3 NASB Whatever – Richard Nisbett’s book, The Geography of Thought, is a contemporary study of ancient differences in worldviews. Contrasting the Western Greek view with that of the Chinese, Nisbett’s analysis demonstrates that our “world” is hardly uniform in conception or observation….
