Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 3426 to 3450 of 3852 results

2 Corinthians 2:5-11

Understanding Series

James M. Scott

... explains the survival of Korah’s sons by claiming that they repented of their sin (cf. Frederick J. Murphy, “Korah’s Rebellion in Pseudo-Philo 16,” in Of Scribes and Scrolls: Studies on the Hebrew Bible, Intertestamental Judaism, and Christian Origins Presented to John Strugnell [ed. Harold W. Attridge, et al.; College Theology Society Resources in Religion 5; Lanham, Md.: University Press of America, 1990], pp. 111–20, here p. 117). The Rule of the Community in Qumran deals with both the ...

3427. Faith and Deeds

James 2:14-26, James 2:1-13

Understanding Series

Peter H. Davids

... , had contemplated nature, and this had led him to the one God. He had rejected idolatry, burned the local house of gods, and committed himself to the one God (the story is narrated in the apocryphal book of Jubilees 11–12). Thus Abraham was the originator of the creed “there is one God” (James 2:19). Given this background, it is clear that a Jewish Christian would understand how faith and actions worked together. Unlike Terah in the legends, who agrees with Abraham’s faith but through fear of the ...

3428. Two Kinds of Wisdom

James 3:13-18, James 3:1-12

Understanding Series

Peter H. Davids

... catches the passion: A temper rises, a lust is inflamed. Soon the words, whether an internal dialogue unheard outside or actual speech, burst forth into action. The emotions, the whole of the body, are uncontrollably involved. And where does this destructive fire originate? From hell itself! Here the prison of Satan and the demons stand, by metonymy, for the prisoners. Is that argument inspired by God’s Spirit? No. It is inspired, but by the devil himself. The flames of hate and prejudice, of jealousy ...

3429. Praying for Endurance and Healing

James 5:1-6, James 4:13-17, James 5:7-12, James 5:13-20

Understanding Series

Peter H. Davids

... word for trouble refers to the inner experience of misfortune or misadventure. For example, Josephus uses it for military reverses. See further W. Michaelis, “Kakopatheō,” TDNT, vol. 5, pp. 936–37. Sing songs of praise is used fifty-six times in the Greek Old Testament, originally meaning a song with string accompaniment (Pss. 33:2, 3; 98:4, 5; 147:7; 149:3). Later it meant any song of praise (Pss. 7:17; 9:2). In the New Testament one might sing praises in painful circumstances (Acts 5:41; 16:25) as ...

3430. Praying for Endurance and Healing

James 5:7-12, James 4:13-17, James 5:1-6, James 5:13-20

Understanding Series

Peter H. Davids

3431. Praying for Endurance and Healing

James 5:13-20, James 4:13-17, James 5:1-6, James 5:7-12

Understanding Series

Peter H. Davids

3432. The Fall of Man

Genesis 3:1-24

Understanding Series

John E. Hartley

... order to keep anyone from having access to the tree of life. Additional Notes 3:1 The serpent’s reasoning ability and its hostility toward God outdistance its description as a mere creature of the garden. Nevertheless, this narrative does not address the origin of evil. There is no allusion to any cosmic force being responsible for the disobedience of the humans and no hint of cosmic dualism. As Kidner says, “The chapter speaks not of evil invading, as though it had its own existence, but of creatures ...

3433. The Call of Abram

Genesis 12:1-9

Understanding Series

John E. Hartley

... was Canaan. Second, the description of Abram’s departure from Haran and arrival in Canaan (12:5) is expressed in the same way as Terah’s leaving Ur. What Terah began and failed to complete, Abram accomplished. An early credo also traces Israel’s origin to Abram’s leaving Ur (Josh. 24:2–13). In the early church Stephen also interpreted Abram’s move from Ur to Haran in this way (Acts 7:2–5). Having accompanied Terah from Ur, Abram possessed a framework for understanding the directions God ...

3434. Lot and His Daughters

Genesis 19:30-38

Understanding Series

John E. Hartley

... does not make a moral judgment against Lot’s daughters; rather it pictures the tragic way Lot lived out the rest of his life. This sad scene shows the consequences of Lot’s longing to settle in such a wicked city, and it accounts for the origin of two peoples who lived in proximity to Israel. It also explains why the patriarchs never arranged marriages with Lot’s descendants. This scene completes the story of Lot, who had left from Haran with Abraham (12:4). In the Abraham cycle Lot serves as a ...

3435. Other Priestly Garments

Exodus 28:31-43

Understanding Series

James K. Bruckner

... bells (Frazer, “Folklore in the Old Testament,” pp. 263–78). The point of the text is that all respect is due the Lord, who is much more powerful, good, and dangerous to the arrogant than any spirits. The Christian practice of ringing bells to announce services originated in this description of the bells on Aaron’s robe. 28:36 Deuteronomy describes the holiness of the children of Israel, chosen from among all the peoples of the world to be holy to the Lord (Deut. 7:6; 14:2; 26:19). They were not ...

3436. Moses and the Glory of the Lord

Exodus 33:12-23

Understanding Series

James K. Bruckner

... had seen. The NIV does not help by omitting the word “please” (naʾ, particle of entreaty; v. 18 is, lit., “cause me to see, please, your glory”). 33:19b “I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy” uses the same form of repetition of the Lord’s original self-revelation to Moses in 3:14, “I AM WHO I AM.” It is an expansion of the name Yahweh (see Childs, Exodus, p. 596). 33:22 The description, “When my glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft in the rock and cover you with my ...

3437. Materials for the Tabernacle

Exodus 35:4-29

Understanding Series

James K. Bruckner

... hearts. The response to the Lord’s forgiveness and call for obedience was a triumph for the people and the Lord’s work in the world. The travails of the whole book culminate in this offering. This was the voluntary response for which the Lord had originally hoped (25:2). The people withdrew to go to their tents and gather their offerings. They presented the gold they brought, in contrast to the golden calf, for the specific purpose of participating in the Lord’s work. They did not make a demand or ...

3438. The Glory of the Lord

Exodus 40:1-33

Understanding Series

James K. Bruckner

The Presence of the Lord in the Midst of the Camp: In Exodus 40 (v. 34), “the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle” for the first time. As Moses set up the tabernacle, in accordance with the Lord’ instructions, God fulfilled the original intention to deliver and dwell with this chosen people. The outline of the chapter follows a chiastic structure: A vv. 1–8: the Lord said to set up the tabernacle, in sevenfold detail B vv. 9–16: the Lord said to anoint; Moses did everything A′ vv. 17–33: ...

3439. Idolatry Forbidden

Deuteronomy 4:15-31

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... the context of the preceding inverted creation narrative, the thought may be merely of the gift of the heavenly lights to the whole of humanity for the purposes described in Genesis 1:14–18. The worship of these objects by nations was not God’s original intention and must be rejected by Israel. Thus Mayes is probably right to say that the intention of verse 19 is “not to express either tolerance or ridicule of the nations and their practices, but rather to prepare the way for the contrasting picture ...

3440. The Golden Calf

Deuteronomy 9:7-29

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... dust as God despoiled God’s own people in judgment (cf. Exod. 32:2f.; 33:5f.). The third striking feature, however, is unique to the Deuteronomic account, namely, the reference to Moses’ intercession on behalf of Aaron (v. 20). If even Israel’s original high priest, with all the holiness the tradition attached to him and his family, far from being righteous in himself had stood under the anger of God and in danger of destruction but for Moses’ intercession, what possible grounds could there be for ...

3441. Firstborn Animals

Deuteronomy 15:19-23

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

The Sacrifice of Firstborn Animals: 15:19–23 There are several possible reasons why this law is included in this context. One is that the fuller details of the original law (in Exod. 13:11–15; cf. also 22:29f.; 34:19f.; Num. 18:15–18) come in close association with the regulations for the passover, which also follows next in Deuteronomy. Another is that they both have a link in the catchword “firstborn” (since the passover celebrated the sparing ...

3442. Feast of Weeks

Deuteronomy 16:9-12

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... not provide the reason for the feast itself, it certainly did provide the reason why everyone, and espedaily the poor, those without family, and the landless, should benefit from it. Verse 12 is thus a typical Deuteronomic motivation for verse 11, which is itself a typical Deuteronomic expansion of the original liturgical calendar (vv. 9f.).

3443. The King

Deuteronomy 17:14-20

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... of Solomon has clearly been written with these verses as a background, it is not necessary to assume that this law of kingship must be a post factum reflection of Solomon. The nature of ancient Near Eastern monarchies was common knowledge, and Israel, from its earliest origins, had plenty of dealings with nations headed by kings (e.g., already, Sihon of the hard heart and Og of the hard bed, Deut. 2:30; 3:11). Any leader or legislator in Israel had enough knowledge of what kings could be like to know what ...

3444. Witnesses

Deuteronomy 19:15-21

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... literal and vengeful sense, has entered popular imagination as the summation of all OT ethics. (This can be the only reason why my own book on OT ethics was unilaterally given the title An Eye for An Eye by its American publishers, instead of its original British title, Living as the People of God!). Yet it is abundantly clear to any reader of Deut. alone that such a view is a misunderstanding that totally ignores the ethos of compassion, generosity, concern for the weak, and restraint of the powerful that ...

3445. Various Laws

Deuteronomy 21:22--22:12

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... the judicial context of Exodus and changes “your enemy’s ox” to your brother’s ox, thus widening its relevance to all Israelites at any time. Animals should not have to suffer because of human neglect either. Deuteronomy adds some other details to the original law: the animal should be cared for until a distant or unknown owner claims it (v. 2); the same principle should be applied to any form of lost property (v. 3); help should be given to a neighbor in difficulty (v. 4). The significant phrase ...

3446. Moses Blesses the Tribe

Deuteronomy 33:1-29

Understanding Series

Christopher J. H. Wright

... , a prophet, and more. 33:2–5 These opening verses are balanced by the closing verses of the chapter (vv. 26–29) in celebrating the power of Yahweh as guide, king, and protector of Israel. They have been regarded as two stanzas of what was originally one single hymn, into which the tribal blessings have been inserted after the reference to the tribes in verse 5. This may well be so, though there is no reason why the poem could not have been constructed intentionally as it now stands. The flow of ...

3447. David Makes Solomon King

1 Kings 1:28-53

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

... these troops appear (cf. prior to this 2 Sam. 8:18; 15:18; 20:7, 23) that they were David’s own personal guard, probably mercenary troops drawn from among the non-Israelite population of Canaan, most likely (as the names imply) of Cretan and Philistine origin. David had spent some time among the Philistines (1 Sam. 27; 29–30, cf. 30:14, “the Negev of the Kerethites”), and had known their loyalty as soldiers before (2 Sam. 15:19–22). King David’s mule: The mule is significant because it belongs ...

3448. Ahab Defeats Ben-Hadad

1 Kings 20:13-34

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

... the city (cf. Josh. 6, esp. 6:15 for seventh day upon which battle was joined). Ben-Hadad’s officials produce a second plan (v. 31): surrender! Doubtless more because he has no alternatives rather than because he still trusts their judgment (cf. the origin of “plan A” in vv. 23ff.), Ben-Hadad allows them to proceed (vv. 32–33), clothed to signify penitence (sackcloth, cf. 21:27) and submissiveness (ropes round their heads—by which they may be led?). A deal is struck that involves the reversal of ...

3449. A Prophet Condemns Ahab

1 Kings 20:35-43

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

3450. The Shunammite's Son Restored to Life

2 Kings 4:8-37

Understanding Series

Iain W. Provan

... is really deadly in a literal sense—that is only what the men who have tasted it say. What is indisputable is that Elisha knows, in his wisdom, what to add to the pot to make everything all right—even though no one else knows what the cook originally put in (v. 39). He has remarkable insight, even into the various properties of plants. It is this that makes him a better cook than his servant—as he was a greater healer in 4:8–37. 4:42–44 The final miracle also concerns provision for the “sons ...

Showing results