Peter J. Leithart

Edwin Friedman ( A Failure of Nerve: Leadership in the Age of the Quick Fix ) notes that the intensity of an adulterous relationship arises from the way it creates an emotional triangle. The attraction is not the sex so much as the secrecy, which “creates an intense emotional bond by . . . . Continue Reading »

Most English translations inform us that there is a book “in the hand of” the One Enthroned in Revelation 5. That is more than the Greek says. In the Greek, the word “hand” does not appear, and the preposition ( epi ) doesn’t mean “in” but rather . . . . Continue Reading »

John uses the verb eido (see, know) seventy times in the Apocalypse. The word is translated in various ways (behold, saw, look), which obscures the Greek pattern. Seventy is the number of the nations, the seventy uses perhaps reinforce the fact that Revelation describes the bringing of the nations . . . . Continue Reading »

Toward the end of a polemic against Judah’s idolatry, which occupies every hill and mountain and leafy tree, Jeremiah makes this comment: “the shameful thing has consumed the labor of our fathers since our youth, their flocks and their herds, their sons and their daughters” . . . . Continue Reading »

An excerpt from my forthcoming book on empires is posted at http://www.firstthings.com/ today. . . . . Continue Reading »

It is common these days to read the Bible as an anti-imperial epic, the story of God and Israel, then (for Christians) God and Jesus, against empire. “Come out, come out from Babylon, my people!” is the theme. It’s a hard sell for all sorts of reasons. Jeremiah urges the people of Judah to enter not exit Babylon (Jeremiah 27, 29). Isaiah invests Cyrus the Persian conqueror with Davidic titles”he is the Lord’s “servant” and “shepherd” and “anointed one” (Isaiah 44-45)… . Continue Reading »

In Selling Worship , Pete Ward’s thoughtful assessment of “how what we sing has changed the Church,” Ward notes that certain aspects of contemporary culture “will fit well with what we are doing while some other characteristics of the culture will be problematic.” He . . . . Continue Reading »

Isaiah 31-32 constitute a single passage, a single “woe” pronounced against those in Judah who rely on Egypt for help. The passage is structured in a simple chiasm: A. Weak flesh of Egypt v. strength of Spirit, 31:1-3 B. Yahweh defends Zion and turns away Assyrians, 31:4-9 C. Yahweh . . . . Continue Reading »

Many commentators suggest that Paul borrows his notion of a Christological Rock that follows Israel through the wilderness from intertestamental commentary on the OT. That may be, but the notion of is already evident in the OT itself. Yahweh after all is the Rock of Israel, and both leads and . . . . Continue Reading »

Zion, like Eden, is a well-watered place: There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God (Psalm 46:4). Yahweh Himself is teh river of delights that refreshes Jerusalem’s inhabitants and nourishes its life. In Isaiah 32:4, the prophet foresees a new Davidic king surrounded by princes . . . . Continue Reading »