Bucer wrote, “Because by faith we embrace this righteousness and benevolence of God, it shines in us, and thus he imparts himself, so that also we, too, are driven by some zeal for righteousness.” He’s got just about everything you’d want there: Righteousness comes by faith; . . . . Continue Reading »
In his 1519 lectures on Galatians, Luther had this to say about Galatians 1-5: “Now is not the fact that faith is reckoned as righteousness a receiving of the Spirit? So either [Paul] proves nothing or the reception of the Spirit and the fact that faith is reckoned as righteousness will . . . . Continue Reading »
In contrast to later Scholasticism, Peter Lombard argued that the grace given to the soul was not merely a gift from God but God’s gift of Himself. He refuted those who thought that “the Holy Spirit, God Himself, is not given, but His gifts, which are not the Spirit Himself. . . . . Continue Reading »
In his Grace and Christology in the Early Church (Oxford Early Christian Studies) , Douglas Fairbairn argues that the Christololgical debates of the fifth century were also debates about the nature of grace. Is grace only an assisting power that enables us to cooperate with God (Nestorian) or . . . . Continue Reading »
The first cutting of flesh took place in the flood (Genesis 9:11). The second was the cutting of flesh in circumcision (Genesis 17:14), particularly the cutting off of those who refuse to cut the flesh. Circumcision is a sign of the division of the human race, its cutting into Jew and Gentile. . . . . Continue Reading »
Why is the creation account in Genesis 1:1-2:3 outside the toledothic structure of the book as a whole? The reason is bound up with the meaning of “toledoth.” Rooted in the word for “beget,” it means “the begettings of” or “the product . . . . Continue Reading »
A stab at discerning a pattern in the Genesis toledoth sections: Creation, 1:1-2:3 1. Generations of heaven and earth, 2:4-4:26 (beginnings, along with fall in Eden and Cain’s fratricide) 2. Generations of Adam, 5:1-6:8 (genealogy with ages) 3. Generations of Noah, 6:9-9:29 (lengthy . . . . Continue Reading »
Genesis 10 is a fascinating passage, full of tantalizing tidbits of ancient history and of intersections between the biblical record and ancient mythology and history. Japhet is the Hebrew equivalent of Iapetus, one of the Titans in Homer and Hesiod, son of Ouranos and Gaia. One of . . . . Continue Reading »
Cain’s descendants build cities, develop metallurgy and music, tame flocks. Seth’s descendants have nothing but dates and numbers. That is to say: Cain has all the stuff, but time belongs to Seth. . . . . Continue Reading »
Here’s a sketchy, general structural analysis of Genesis 4. A. Adam knows Eve, vv 1-2 (Cain born/Abel born//Abel flocks/Cain ground) B. Cain and Abel, vv 3-16 C. Cain knows wife, v 17-18 B’. Lamech, vv 19-24 A’. Adam knows Eve, vv 25-26 B breaks down as follows: A. Offerings to . . . . Continue Reading »
Subscribe
Latest Issue
Support First Things
