By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept when we remembered Zion. There on the poplars we hung our harps, for there our captors asked us for songs, our tormentors demanded songs of joy; they said, “Sing us one of the songs of Zion!” How can we sing the songs of the Lord while in a foreign land? …
They quickly forgot His works; they did not wait for His counsel, but craved intensely in the wilderness, and tempted God in the desert. Psalm 106:13-14 NASB 1995 Quickly forgot – māhar šokḥu reads the Hebrew text, but it is hyperbole. Clearly Israel didn’t forget the works of YHVH overnight. It took decades for the…
For it was of the Lord to harden their hearts, to meet Israel in battle in order that he might utterly destroy them, that they might receive no mercy, but that he might destroy them, just as the Lord had commanded Moses. Joshua 11:20 NASB Utterly destroy – Verses like this generated the liberal view that the God of the…
By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept when we remembered Zion. There on the poplars we hung our harps, for there our captors asked us for songs, our tormentors demanded songs of joy; they said, “Sing us one of the songs of Zion!” How can we sing the songs of the Lord while in a foreign land? …
and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written: Luke 4:17 NIV Scroll – Peter Enns is the sort of radical thinker that Christians need to read. He’s not Messianic. He might not even lean toward Judaism. But his insights into how Christianity understands…
God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, Hebrews 1:1 NASB In many ways – The opening statement of the author of Hebrews contains a hidden and very important axiom. God spoke to us “in many ways.” The Greek word is polutropos. The word…
He established the earth upon its foundations, so that it will not totter forever and ever. You covered it with the deep as with a garment; the waters were standing above the mountains. Psalm 104:5-6 NASB Above – Here is a visual representation of the cosmology of Genesis: It’s nothing like even the simplest grade…
You shall not lie with a male as one lies with a female; it is an abomination. Leviticus 18:22 Abomination – Yesterday we commented on Feinstein’s insight that the prohibition against homosexuality “is at its core an appeal to the emotions.”[1] We noticed that the real issue for contemporary society is the lack of cultural…
Depart from me, you evildoers, that I may keep the commandments of my God. Psalm 119:115 ESV Keep – The company you keep has a direct effect on your ability to delight the Lord. Old places and old faces, as every Twelve-Stepper knows, will certainly drag you back down the addictive path. Anyone who thinks…
Ruth the Moabite said, “He even told me, ‘Stay close to my workers until all my harvest is finished.’” Ruth 2:21 JPS Workers – Phyllis Trible observes that Ruth must work within the culture and against the culture in order to transform the culture. This verse captures Ruth’s daring enterprise with typical Hebraic clues. Nothing…
