“And in the End”

A good name is better than fragrant oil, and the day of death than the day of birth. Ecclesiastes 7: 1 JPS Day of death – “Many individuals report that they rarely think of their own death but are obsessed with the idea, and the terror, of transiency.  Every pleasant moment is corroded by the…

Hebrew Greek

because God did not make death nor does he delight in the destruction of the living.  Wisdom of Salomon 1:13  A New English Translation of the Septuagint Death – It’s fairly widely recognized that The Wisdom of Salomon was composed in Greek in the mid first century B.C.E. It contains many Hellenistic themes, most likely imported…

Fear of Dying

“‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” Revelation 21:4  NIV No more death – Are you afraid to die?  Before you answer with the “hoped-for next world eternal existence of the soul” paradigm, remember that dying…

Going Home

we are of good courage, I say, and prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord.  2 Corinthians 5:8  NASB 1995 Absent – “The fantasy of escape from the struggle of existence must be deeply addressed if one is to find the vital center of one’s being.”[1] “I just…

A Tender and Delicate Sadness

“Man, who is born of woman, is short-lived and full of turmoil.”  Job 14:1  NASB Man – I still have places to go. Katmandu, Nepal Paro Taktsang Monastery, Bhutan Skógafoss, Iceland Anse Lazio Beach, Seychelles Ashikaga Flower Park, Japan Cao Bang Ban Gioc Waterfall, Vietnam Caño Cristales, Columbia Raja Ampat, Indonesia Dongchuan, China Marble Caves, Chico, Chile…

Riddle Resolved

“Where, O death, is your victory?    Where, O death, is your sting?”  The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.  But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.  1 Corinthians 15:55-57  NIV Sting – Abraham Heschel once described Christianity as a religion of death. …

The End of the Game

A good name is better than good oil, and the day of one’s death is better than the day of one’s birth.  Ecclesiastes 7:1  NASB Day of one’s death – Qohelet (Koheleth, “the Teacher”) is an empirical pessimist.  That alone made the decision to place this work within the canon quite controversial.  It’s virtually impossible that the material was written by…

Six Feet Under

“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.”  Psalm 23:4  Woman’s Day Death – After that rant about Deuteronomy 31:8 you’re probably wondering why I would ever decide to pick another “out of…

Significance

Then God said, “Let Us make mankind in Our image, according to Our likeness;”  Genesis 1:26a  NASB Our likeness – First, let’s look at the Hebrew: וַיֹּאמֶר אֱלֹהִים, נַעֲשֶׂה אָדָם בְּצַלְמֵנוּ כִּדְמוּתֵנוּ Now the transliteration: Va•yo•mer Elohim na•a•se a•dam be•tzal•me•noo kid•moo•te•noo And lastly, the translation: And said God let us make man in representation (copy) ours and…

Kissing cousins (3)

and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.  Revelation 21:4  NASB Death – What do we do to blunt the reality of dying?  The answer isn’t quite so straightforward as you might imagine.  Since death…