You shall let the mother go, but the young you may take for yourself, that it may go well with you, and that you may live long. Deuteronomy 22:7 ESV Live long – What is the relationship between sparing the life of a mother bird and how long I live? The Torah tells me that…
In return for my love they accuse me, but I give myself to prayer. Psalm 109:4 ESV I give myself to – Reading this verse presents a dilemma. Are we to accept the gloss (the additional words) of the translation because it makes sense to us or are we to reject the gloss and end…
Recently I offered a critique of Dwight Pryor’s lectures on Paul and the Law. It caused quite a stir. Most people who objected reminded me that Dwight was a leader in understanding the Jewishness of Jesus (Yeshua). But none offered in direct rebuttal about what he said in those lectures. Now I am here to…
Be exalted, O God, above the heavens! Let your glory be over all the earth! Psalm 57:11 ESV Over – As we know very well, in languages without punctuation, emphasis is indicated by word order. What matters most usually comes first. So when we translate Hebrew expressions into English, the word order is often rearranged…
For your steadfast love is great to the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds. Psalm 57:10 ESV Heavens/ Clouds – shamayim and shehaqim describe David’s new perspective. But considering the circumstances, this is quite a shock. David is sitting in a cave! Is he viewing the clouds, enjoying the sun, gazing at the heavens? No. …
On Friday I flew to Kansas City for the scheduled seminar. How wonderful it was to see everyone, many who have been readers for years but whom I have never met in person. And what a thrill to find that one couple drove all the way from Idaho and another from Texas to come to…
I will give thanks to you, O Lord, among the peoples; I will sing praises to you among the nations. Psalm 57:9 ESV Peoples/ nations – What’s the difference? People or nation? Why make this distinction, especially when we realize in Hebrew it is only the difference between Ayin and Aleph (Ayin-Mem = people, Aleph-Mem…
Awake, my glory! Awake, harp and lyre! I will awaken the dawn. Psalm 57:8 NASB My glory – Did you find David’s expression a bit unusual? Is he foreshadowing Maslow or Shakespeare? Does he mean that his glory, the importance of his own self-esteem, needs to find expression (Maslow) or is he using the phrase…
Awake, my glory! Awake, harp and lyre! I will awaken the dawn. Psalm 57:8 NASB Awake – So you’re hiding from your enemies. You’ve found a nice hole in the ground and you’ve covered yourself in darkness. You’re safe. Then you realize, just as Elijah did, that all the threats that seeks to harm you…
My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast; I will sing, yes, I will sing praises! Psalm 57:7 NASB Steadfast – To put it bluntly, Greek certainty is cognitive, Hebrew certainty is volitional. In Greek thought, certainty is a function of justified true belief. It is the attempt to determine rational, logical conclusions…
