Let my prayer be counted as incense before you, and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice! Psalm 141:2 ESV Sacrifice – Come and worship the King! Surrender your vanities, burn your insolence, abandon your bias.[1] But do not think that you will go away unscathed. Do not imagine His holiness will…
Otherwise, He would have needed to suffer often since the foundation of the world; but now once at the consummation of the ages He has been manifested to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself. Hebrews 9:26 NASB The consummation of the ages – Go back a few verses. Get the context first. Verse…
Therefore, when He comes into the world, He says, ‘Sacrifice and offering Thou hast not desired, but a body Thou hast prepared for Me;’” Hebrews 10:5 NASB World – So now we know that the word “body” is substituted for “ear” by this author. Why? Guthrie provides the following explanation: “the author appropriates the psalm…
And for this reason hath he been chosen and hidden before Him, before the creation of the world and for evermore. 1 Enoch 48:6 Before the creation – Most Christians have never heard of the Book of Enoch. Written about 300 BCE, it is a part of Jewish apocalyptic literature. Some of it is actually…
Watch the path of your feet and all your ways will be established. Proverbs 4:26 NASB Will be established – It’s almost time for the world’s celebration of the pagan New Year. That means it’s almost time for the annual resolutions of self-improvement. But this year, let’s try something different. Let’s go back to the…
In the beginning, God created . . . Genesis 1:1 NASB In the beginning – It is little wonder that some rabbis spent their entire lives contemplating the opening three words of Scripture. We have spent quite a bit of time on the same subject. At last count, there are half a dozen or more…
You have not lied to men but to God Acts 5:4 NASB Lied – This word comes from the Greek word pseudomai. You will see our English word pseudo in this verb. It means “what is false.” Peter confronts Ananias. It is not a confrontation about the sale of the property. It is not about…
One of the difficulties believers face understanding the place of the cross in Christian theology is directly related to a prior commitment (usually without reflective consideration) to the philosophical concept of the Greek idea of time. Examination of this assumption demonstrates that it is the philosophical concept itself that produces confusion about the role of…
And according to the Law, one may almost say, all things are cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness. Hebrews 9:22 NASB Shedding of blood – Rabbi Robert Gorelik argues compellingly that the author of Hebrews gives us a picture of the sacrifice of Yeshua in the heavenly temple. …
And according to the Law, one may almost say, all things are cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness. Hebrews 9:22 NASB Shedding of blood – This will be difficult. To even suggest an alternative understanding of what we are about to investigate may cause apoplectic theological shock. Some…
