In the past I have referred to Jo Steenkamp’s book on trauma and trauma therapy. The book has never been available in the USA. When I was in South Africa, I found out that Joe has a completely revised edition. I brought TWO copies home with me. So I have TWO (and only 2) copies…
“Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.” John 8:24 NASB Believe– John uses the Greek “believe” in one form or another ninety-two times in his gospel. It is never once a noun. Pisteuo is a verb, a verb…
Doing wickedness is like sport to a fool, and so is wisdom to a man of understanding. Proverbs 10:23 NASB Sport– What makes you laugh? Seriously, what do you laugh about? According to Solomon, the fool laughs at doing wickedness. The NASB attempts to capture the idiom with the translation “sport,” but the word is sehoq, a…
And Abigail hurried and rose and mounted a donkey, and her five young women attended her. She followed the messengers of David and became his wife. David also took Ahinoam of Jezreel, and both of them became his wives. 1 Samuel 25:42-43 NASB Ahinoam– My name is Bond, David Bond. Or so the script might have gone if it…
And turning His gaze toward His disciples, He began to say, “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. Luke 6:20 NASB Poor – Matthew translates Yeshua’s statement differently. In Matthew’s Greek, the text says ptochoi pneumati. He needs this added bit of Greek because his reading audience is Jewish and he must distinguish in Greek…
You hid Your face, I was dismayed. To You, O Lord, I called, and to the Lord I made supplication: “What profit is there in my blood, if I go down to the pit? Will the dust praise You? Will it declare Your faithfulness?” Psalm 30:7b-9 NASB Hid – “In a world where God hides His face, human life seems to…
“But put forth Your hand now and touch all that he has; he will surely curse You to Your face.” Job 1:11 NASB Your hand– yadeka. Your hand. The pronoun carries a lot of weight here. This isn’t just any external force. This is the hand of God. That is uncomfortable. Do we ignore the bad in order…
As I get ready to fly back to the USA, I remember what a great experience it was to see some of the creation in the wild. Maybe next time you will come with me.
Recently several blog posts have suggested that my work needs modification in order to meet the needs of the audience or get in alignment with popular Messianic thinking. So I offer this reminder. Today’s Word is a personal exploration of biblical and cultural assumptions. That’s why the topics are so diverse and the biblical passages are…
