How long, O Lord? Will You forget me forever? How long will You hide Your face from me? Psalm 13:1 NASB Hide Your face – I understand the absence of the Landlord when the tenant deserves judgment. Feeling the brokenness of relationship is a powerful incentive for repentance and restitution, as every parent knows. Children who need to…
Now these are the names of the sons of Israel who came to Egypt with Jacob; they came each one with his household: Exodus 1:1 NASB Household – What did the children of Israel bring with them into the desert? What did they carry for forty years as they wandered toward Canaan? Each one brought his…
Spinoza was one of the world’s great philosophers. He also happened to be Jewish. He lived in the attic of a house in Europe while he wrote some of the most challenging thoughts about the human condition. I am reminded of Spinoza these days, not because I am a great philosopher or even a great…
“But where can wisdom be found? And where is the place of understanding?” Job 28:12 NASB Where – The goal of growing is not to be finished. If you ever reached the finished line, there would be no reason to continue. Might as well be dead. Life is about the continuous project of change, of growth,…
“But where can wisdom be found? And where is the place of understanding?” Job 28:12 NASB Where – What is the source of wisdom? Where do you go to get understanding? “Just tell me where to look so that I can find the answers,” seems to be the consistent cry of those who have embarked on…
The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. Romans 16:20 NASB Will soon– syntríbō, in this case, a future, active, indicative tense. As Bertram notes: “The image of smashing Satan in Rom. 16:20 (cf. Gen. 3:15; Ps. 91:13) suggests both present victory over the powers of darkness and the imminent eschatological destruction of Satan.”[1] We…
Thirty minutes before the last Italy tour finished, I experienced a new form of pain. My Achilles tendon ruptured and I fell to the floor. The rest of the night was in the hospital. Now I am home getting ready for surgery to repair the tendon, and looking forward to more pain and 3 to…
But they will say, ‘It’s hopeless! For we are going to follow our own plans, and each of us will act according to the stubbornness of his evil heart.’ Jeremiah 18:12 NASB It’s hopeless! – Avivah Gottlieb Zornberg’s book, The Particulars of Rapture: Reflections on Exodus, is a difficult read. Just so we clear up the title, it is not about…
Then God spoke all these words, saying, “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.” Exodus 20:1-2 NASB I am the Lord your God – “ . . the opening of the Ten Commandments is read by Mei HaShiloach: ‘I am the Lord your God.’ The word…
Then God spoke all these words, saying, “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.” Exodus 20:1-2 NASB I am the Lord your God– Were the Ten Commandments good for Israel? Well, that depends. First let’s clear up a few details. The Ten Commandments were given to Israel,…
