She said to them, “Do not call me Naomi; call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. I went out full, but the Lord has brought me back empty. Why do you call me Naomi, since the Lord has witnessed against me and the Almighty has afflicted me?” Ruth 1:20-21 Lord…
“Now the parable is this: the seed is the word of God.” Luke 8:11 NASB Parable – Peter complained that Paul’s writing was difficult to follow, but Paul’s letters are a piece of cake compared to the teachings of Yeshua in the Gospels. Why? Because I can at least follow Paul’s arguments and reasoning with…
Within it there were figures resembling four living beings. And this was their appearance: they had human form. Ezekiel 1:5 NASB Figures – Ezekiel’s vision is fodder for all kinds of eschatological grist mills. The history of interpretation of these verses demonstrates how paradigm pre-suppositions affect religious belief. But this penchant to read the text…
And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory. 1 Timothy 3:16 KJV God – The King James translation of the Bible held sway over Protestant Christendom for 400…
I, even I, am the Lord; and beside me there is no savior. Isaiah 43:11 NASB I, even I am the Lord – The One New Man Bible claims to “make the Jewish roots of Christianity come to life.”[1] You might find that statement problematic just as I do, but I appreciate the attempt. Certainly…
In the beginning God created [et] . . . . Genesis 1:1 NASB Et – If you read this text in Hebrew you would read the following: beresheet bara Elohim et hashamayim ve-et ha-aretz. Let me try to display this in Hebrew letters: Why is it important to see the Hebrew text? Because there is…
Once you have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, you will never be moved again. Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest, December 3 (1992 edition) Relationship – No, you won’t find this “verse” in the Bible. It is a citation from the 1992 copyright edition of Oswald Chambers’ famous devotional. But it isn’t what…
But shun foolish controversies and genealogies and strife and disputes about the Law; for they are unprofitable and worthless. Titus 3:9 NASB Disputes – Sermon after sermon, article after article, book after book – all about the place of the Law in the life of a Christian. I wonder if Paul wouldn’t throw up his…
“And in their case the prophecy of Isaiah is being fulfilled, which says, ‘You will keep on hearing, but will not understand; and you will keep on seeing, but will not perceive;’” Matthew 13:14 NASB Will not understand/ will not perceive – “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God” (Romans 10:17). …
God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, . . . Hebrews 1:1 Prophets/ Portions/ Ways – In the introduction to A Reader’s Hebrew Bible, Bryan Smith makes the point that there is a considerable difference between a gloss and a translation. A gloss…
