Allison notes the frequent ancient association of Moses with asses. According to Diodorus Siculus, “When Antiochus . . . made war against the Jews he entered the sacred shrine of the god, where only the priest is allowed to go. In it he found a stone image of a thick bearded man seated on an . . . . Continue Reading »
Waters also says, “Leithart also forthrightly rejects the Reformed doctrine of the imputation of Christ’s righteousness to the believer.” I don’t do that either. What I have questioned, however, is whether we have exegetical grounds for distinguishing . . . . Continue Reading »
In his new book on the Federal Vision, Guy Waters claims, “It appears, then, that Leithart has called into question the historic Reformed doctrine of the imputation of Adam’s sin to his posterity.” I don’t. But Waters is right to sense that I’m interested in ways of . . . . Continue Reading »
Allison offers a series of interesting connections between the early chapters of Gen and the early chapters of Ex: 1) Israel is “multiplying” (Ex 2:2) in the way that God commanded the human race to multiply (Gen 1:26-28), concluding, with some help from Samaritan texts, that MOses is . . . . Continue Reading »
In his book on Mosaic typology in Matthew, commenting on Matt 5:1-2 in particular, Allison reviews some of the Jewish literature that suggests that Moses sat enthroned on Sinai. The idea was based on Deut 9:9, where Moses says “I remained (YASHAB) on the mountain forty days and forty . . . . Continue Reading »
Interpretation is, we’re often told, a matter of explaining what’s in the text. Only eisegetes talk about what’s not already there. Discussing Matthew 1:1, Dale Allison offers this, much more accurate, alternative: “The interpretation of this line can be nothing other than . . . . Continue Reading »
In a recent book on Roman images, Tonio Holscher notes that Roman artists borrowed from every phase of Greek art because all phases of Greek art were available simultaneously. According to the TLS reviewer of his book (May 12), “In Greece, these styles had evolved over time, from the stiff . . . . Continue Reading »
Given the importance of figures like Durkheim, Mauss, and Levi-Strauss in anthropology, it’s surprising to learn that “the French kept anthropology long under the umbrella of sociology, with the first degree in anthropology being awarded in 1968 and the first professional association of . . . . Continue Reading »
William St Clair (TLS May 12) makes the commonsensical point that a history of ideas requires an accompanying social history of reading, which is a history of the publishing trade: “When we read a book or essay called, say, ‘The Age of Wordsworth,’ should we not be concerned that, . . . . Continue Reading »
In his novel The Seizure of Power , Czeslaw Milocz describes one Polish character’s preparation for life under the Soviets by telling the story of his school experience. At first, Peter wrote and thought for himself; he got bad grades and was the source of endless trouble. One day, he wrote . . . . Continue Reading »