On Sinai, Moses intercedes for Israel, asking Yahweh to go with them. First, Yahweh promises to send His Angel ahead; finally, He promises to go before Israel Himself. The sequence of events from Exodus 19-40 is a double-covenant sequence. Israel agrees to do all that Yahweh commands, and . . . . Continue Reading »
Exodus lists the nations of the land of Canaan seven times, and the lists shift through the book. The lists are: Exodus 3:8: give land of 6 nations (Canaanite, Hittite, Amorite, Perizzite, Hivite, Jebusite). Exodus 3:17: give land of 6 nations (same as in 3:8). Exodus 13:5: give land of 5 nations . . . . Continue Reading »
At the center of Lamentations, Jeremiah confesses that Yahweh is his portion (3:24). That’s said of the Levites: They have no land, so Yahweh is their portion and inheritance (Numbers 18:20). By driving Israel from the land, Yahweh makes them all Levites, all priests, who all have Yahweh as . . . . Continue Reading »
A couple of notes on Esther, following up on suggestions made by student papers. First, one student pointed to the chronology of Esther, which I’d never paid much attention to. The story takes place over a number of years, from the third-year feast (1:3) to the seventh-year exaltation of . . . . Continue Reading »
Do the dead praise God? asks the Psalmist (88:10; 115:17). Yes, says the book of Jonah: As he descends to the roots of the mountains and the gates of Sheol, Jonah sings Yahweh’s praises (Jonah 2). A song of hope and triumph erupting from the grave: This is the sign of Jonah. . . . . Continue Reading »
Genesis 17 is the great transition in the story of Abraham. Just prior, he has fathered a child with Hagar. It’s the high point of the story so far: Abram, the Big Father, finally has a son. But it’s not the son who will carry the promise. It’s the best flesh can do, but . . . . Continue Reading »
Nebuchadnezzar “broke” ( shavar ) the bronze furnishings of the temple and carried the bronze away to Babylon. “Breaking” is just what Israel was supposed to do to the idols of the land ( shavar is used in Exodus 23:24; 24:13; Deuteronomy 7:5). It is what faithful kings did . . . . Continue Reading »
The list of (mostly) bronze items taken from the temple into Babylonian exile in 2 Kings 25:13-17 is intricately put together. It begins and ends with references to pillars (vv. 13a, 17), and then mentions the bronze sea and the water stands (vv. 13, 16; the order is reversed the second time - . . . . Continue Reading »
What would Israel learn from telling and retelling the story of Abraham, the father of their nation? For one thing, they would be receiving a far different discipleship and pedagogy than nations whose fathers were phallic gods. David Leeming notes that “All Australian male ancestor gods of . . . . Continue Reading »
Greeks, like Jews, believed that corpses defiled. According to Robert Parker’s classic Miasma: Pollution and Purification in Early Greek Religion (Clarendon Paperbacks) , a dead body defiled not only the people present, but also the house, which had to be cleansed after the body was removed. . . . . Continue Reading »
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