Addressing the question of whether God is “object” to us, Jenson says that objectivity is essential to conversation: “In all true mutual discourse . . . each must be both subject for and object of the other. As I am present to address you, I am a subject and you are my . . . . Continue Reading »
Athanasius’ letter to Amun (354) is a meditation on purity. Defilement, he argues, occurs “when we commit sin, that foulest of things.” That is what Jesus meant when He said that we are defiled by what comes out - out of the heart . Bodily functions, by contrast, do . . . . Continue Reading »
A fragment of Athanasius’ Easter Letter #22: “Our Lord Jesus Christ, who took upon Him to die for us all, stretched forth His hands, not somewhere on the earth beneath, but in the air itself, in order that the salvation effected by the Cross might be shown to be for all men everywhere; . . . . Continue Reading »
INTRODUCTION With the plotters closing in on Him, Jesus celebrates the Passover with His disciples, but in the process He transforms it into a meal centered on the gift of His body and blood and celebrating the cutting of a new covenant. THE TEXT “Now on the first day of the Feast of . . . . Continue Reading »
The poor you will always have with you, Jesus says in defending the woman’s “wasteful” devotion, but you won’t always have me. The key to understanding this is to recognize that Jesus speaks of the woman pouring oil on His “body.” The key is to recognize . . . . Continue Reading »
Comparing the beginning and end of Matthew’s passion narrative (Matthew 26:1-16; 28:1-20), Daniel Patte notes that both involve a confrontation between Jesus and the Jewish leaders. But the balance of that confrontation shifts; Jesus begins in apparent passivity (“delivered . . . . Continue Reading »
I can’t fit it all together, but in general outlines, it’s clear that Matthew’s Passion narrative is tracking with Zechariah 9-14. There are a couple of fixed points: Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem explicitly fulfills Zechariah 9 (cf. Matthew 21:5), and despite the fact . . . . Continue Reading »
The woman pours perfume on Jesus’ head (Matthew 26:7). Jesus says she has “cast” ( ballo ) the perfume on his “body” ( soma ; v. 12). It is like the precious oil upon the head, that runs down upon the beard, even Aaron’s beard, down to the skirts of His . . . . Continue Reading »
The opening episodes of Matthew 26 are organized in a fairly neat chiasm: A. Passover, delivered up, chief priests, plot, 26:1-5 ( paradidomi , v 2; archiereus, v 3) B. Woman pours myrrh on Jesus, 26:6-7 ( muron , v 7) C. Disciples complain: give to poor, 26:8-9 ( ptochos , v 9) D. Jesus: . . . . Continue Reading »
Abraham received the coins from Thares (i.e., Terah), and bought a field with them from the people of Jericho; Joseph was also purchased with them (” his etiam Joseph est emptus ab Ismahelitis”); then they came into Pharaoh’s treasury, and then into the treasury of the Queen of . . . . Continue Reading »
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