Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 351 to 375 of 797 results

Judges 8:1-21

Understanding Series

Cheryl A. Brown

... to the significant turing point in the story (8:22–27), Gideon is looking more and more like his renegade son. Such attitudes and behavior did not suddenly appear, but they slowly took over Gideon, step by step. We can be sure the son learned well from the father. 8:10–12 Gideon moved on in pursuit of the two Midianite kings. He fell upon the unsuspecting army . . . , routing their entire army, and captured the two kings (vv. 11–12). The description of the army as “unsuspecting” foreshadows the ...

352. Tola

Judges 10:1-2

Understanding Series

Cheryl A. Brown

... commonly designated as minor judges, because their stories are condensed into a few brief lines. In most cases, all we know about the judge is his tribal affiliation, his geographical location, and how many years he led Israel; sometimes we learn about his economic situation. But, strikingly, the stories make no reference to the charismatic activity associated with the major judges. While they provide interesting information for historians and biblical geographers, what is not clear is the process by which ...

353. Jephthah

Jud 10:6–11:40

Understanding Series

Cheryl A. Brown

... exactly what he had vowed. Her reluctance to speak openly about the content of the vow reveals her awareness of what it meant to her. The girl revealed her understanding by proposing one last request, which presents her as a daughter who has learned well from her father how to bargain (v. 37). This is a difficult text to understand, especially for those from a modern western cultural context. Things have changed considerably from the ancient biblical culture, in which the epitome of fulfillment—the only ...

354. Samson's Vengeance on the Philistines

Judges 15:1-20

Understanding Series

Cheryl A. Brown

... of mind in Judah recalls the stories I have heard from all over Central and Eastern Europe about life before the end of communism. People were taught to think alike and act alike; they were taught to conform and to obey. When freedom came, they had to learn a whole new way of life, mentally as well as physically. The effects of years of subjugation continue to have their hold on people in numerous ways. A Jewish proverbial statement, “It’s not enough to get the Jews out of the captivity but also to get ...

355. Wives for the Benjamites

Judges 21:1-25

Understanding Series

Cheryl A. Brown

... led them down the path to chaos rather than to shalom, God, nevertheless and in spite of Israel, brought good out of it all. Chaos led to destruction and exile—but not death. Even out of exile, a new Israel was formed, one which had studied and learned the lessons from their history, and returned to the Lord. These then returned to the Land with a vision of a world ordered by the Lord God of Israel, when not only would the children of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob experience shalom and sedaqa, but through ...

356. Naomi and Ruth

Ruth 1:1-22

Understanding Series

Michael S. Moore

... the counsel of the serpent” (b’tyw shl nkhsh, b. B. Bat. 17a—referring to the serpent who tempts Eve). In other words, the ancients try to explain these losses via legal and mythological means. No explanation, however, is ever provided for Naomi. This widow never learns why her fate is to be the same as that of her criminal cousins in Gibeah. 1:4 After Elimelech’s death, Naomi’s first survival plan is to start where she is, in Moab, and arrange marriages for her sons to Moabite women, one named ...

357. Boaz Marries Ruth

Ruth 4:1-12

Understanding Series

Michael S. Moore

... the chance meeting of Ruth and Boaz in 2:3, but events only seem to happen by chance in Ruth. Boaz’s patient anticipation at Bethlehem’s gate contrasts sharply with the Levite’s anxious sitting in the Gibeahite town square (Judg. 19:15). We never learn the personal name of Elimelech’s kinsman. Boaz addresses him only as Mr. So-and-So (peloni ’almoni; 1 Sam. 21:3; 2 Kgs. 6:8). LXX translates this idiom with the Gk word kruphios (“secret, hidden”), but the rationale for this is unclear (perhaps ...

358. Bringing Back the Ark

1 Chronicles 13:1-14

Understanding Series

Louis C. Jonker

... and everything he had experienced the Lord’s blessing. This stands in sharp contrast to the disastrous results described in 1 Samuel 4–6 every time the ark was brought to a Philistine location. Although the death of Uzzah was an expensive lesson to learn along the way, these blessings on Obed-Edom and his household and possessions at least signified that the ark was “on the right way” and that its presence was still of great benefit. Additional Notes 13:1–16:43 Some scholars suggest the existence ...

359. Opposition to the Rebuilding

Ezra 4:1-5

Understanding Series

Leslie C. Allen

... threat to the empire, a flexing of muscles for independence. The imperial court is advised to verify the charge that Jerusalem is rebellious and wicked by ascertaining its sinister history from the imperial archives or “annals” (NRSV). What it would learn was that in the Assyrian period the Judean king Hezekiah had rebelled, while in the Babylonian period Nebuchadnezzar had destroyed the capital for rebellion. While this was true, the historical climate was now completely different—and Judah was in no ...

360. Tattenai's Letter to Darius

Ezra 5:1-17

Understanding Series

Leslie C. Allen

... narrative heading of verse 6 was evidently taken from the address or opening section of the letter. It allowed the narrator to shorten the beginning of the letter in verse 7b. The title great God is used as a mark of polite respect. We learn from verse 8 that the authorities’ start on the work in verse 2 was matched by good progress. The narrator had already extracted information concerning the official authorization and the bureaucratic inquiry for local names to nail down responsibility in verses 3–4 ...

361. The Decree of Darius

Ezra 6:1-12

Understanding Series

Leslie C. Allen

... Darius’ reply with its generous updating of Cyrus’ decree, the positive sequel in verse 13 and the continuation of the good work of 5:8b. He reminded his readers of the initial stimulus of Haggai and Zechariah, which he had related in 5:1–2. He probably learned from a temple inscription the date of the red-letter day when work on the temple was completed. Alternatively, he might have calculated it with the aid of Zechariah 1:12 as the end of a seventy-year period from 586, when Jerusalem fell and the ...

362. List of the Family Heads Returning With Ezra

Ezra 8:1-14

Understanding Series

Leslie C. Allen

... delay the starting time by nearly two weeks, according to 7:9 and 8:31. They were needed for temple duties: this is the explanation given in verse 17. In verse 16, Ezra sent an impressive delegation to find Levites—leaders and men of learning. The latter seem to have been priestly instructors in the Torah. It is significant that in Nehemiah 8:7, 9, which belong to the Ezra memoirs, this term appears twice as a verbal form (“instructed,” “instructing”) that describes the Levites as hermeneutical ...

363. Ezra Reads the Law

Neh 7:73b–8:18

Understanding Series

Leslie C. Allen

... develops chapter 1, where Nehemiah’s prayer traced Judah’s plight and Jerusalem’s sorry state back to breaking the Torah, its “commands, decrees and laws” (1:7). So his mission, sincere and inspired though it was, was just a Band-Aid. Judah needed to learn the Torah in order to avoid its curses, enjoy its promises, and reclaim Jerusalem for the people of God. We saw in the discussion of Ezra 9, above, that Nehemiah 7:73b–8:18 originally belonged to Ezra’s memoirs. The seventh month fits ...

364. Nehemiah's Final Reforms

Nehemiah 13:1-31

Understanding Series

Leslie C. Allen

... to other peoples in verse 24, clinches the connection, although Nehemiah’s report concentrates on cases of intermarriage with women from the province of Ashdod. He heard, rather than saw, evidence of the problem in the children’s speech learned at their mothers’ knee. Language is an emotive indicator of cultural identity. Welsh, Catalan, and Canadian French are modern instances. Hebrew had religious importance because it was the language of Torah and prayer. Nehemiah accosted the children’s fathers ...

365. Queen Vashti Deposed

Esther 1:1-22

Understanding Series

Timothy S. Laniak

... Esther will be measured against the former queen. Ironically, while treating the king with unequivocal deference, Esther will prove to be more independent than Vashti. Xerxes is the king of a vast realm, unprecedented in scope and power. He is also, we learn, a king with a “dangerously tender ego” (Fox, Character, p. 26). This enormously powerful Gentile monarch is a weak man. He is quickly enraged and easily consoled. He seems unable to make decisions without his band of advisers, who provide just-in ...

366. Esther Made Queen

Esther 2:1-18

Understanding Series

Timothy S. Laniak

... . Only the reader will know about her Jewishness until later in the story. Mordecai explicitly asks her to keep it a secret (v. 10). Interestingly, the name Esther comes from the verbal root in Hebrew str, meaning “to conceal.” The final detail we learn about Esther in this introduction concerns her beauty. She was lovely in form and features. This phrase is important to the plot because, as we have seen, the king is intent on replacing Vashti, the “beautiful” queen whose beauty he tried to exploit ...

367. Haman's Plot to Destroy the Jews

Esther 3:1-15

Understanding Series

Timothy S. Laniak

... day they were asking Mordecai why he refused to bow to Haman (3:4). Although (literally) “he did not listen to them” (NIV refused to comply, 3:4), they eventually got the information that proved to be inflammatory. Haman hatches his plot after having learned who Mordecai’s people were (3:6). He had not noticed Mordecai’s behavior, nor did he know his ethnic identity, until they pointed it out. The other officials appeared interested in precipitating just such court intrigue. 3:7–11 Haman’s plot ...

368. Wisdom is Supreme

Proverbs 4:1-27

Understanding Series

Roland E. Murphy

... personifies Wisdom as a woman to be possessed and embraced (the erotic language of 3:18 is intensified in 4:5–8). My sons (not “my son”) are addressed, as in 5:7; 7:24; 8:32. The call for attention is motivated by the promise of sound learning in verse 2 and the urgency is increased by the personal tone of the father who opens his instruction in a typical way (v. 4; cf. 7:2a for repetition of the last line). The intensity is suggested by the fourfold repetition to get wisdom and understanding. In ...

369. The Proverbs of Solomon

Proverbs 10:1-32

Understanding Series

Roland E. Murphy

... in meaning to verse 11a and also 14:33. The importance of correct (wise) speech is a constant topos in this literature. The parallelism (antithetic in the NIV) with verse 13b is not obvious. Perhaps the sense is that while the sages increase in wisdom, fools learn only from corporal punishment (cf. 26:3b; also 19:25), if then. Verses 13–14 are associated by lips and mouth. 10:14 Antithetic. It is characteristic of the wise to be careful in speech (17:27). They know when to speak and what to say. But ...

370. Proverbs of Solomon

Proverbs 13:1-25

Understanding Series

Roland E. Murphy

13:1 Antithetic. Literally, verse 1a exhibits juxtaposition: “a wise son—a father’s discipline” (see the Additional Notes). In any case, the emphasis is on docility and openness to learning. 13:2 See 12:14a and 18:20. The MT reads: “From the fruit of his mouth a man eats good (things),” that is, there is profit from his words. This presumes that the speech of a (good) person will be rewarded. The parallelism with verse 2b, where the soul ( ...

371. Proverbs of Solomon

Proverbs 14:1-35

Understanding Series

Roland E. Murphy

... :7–8; 21:24) is difficult to determine. His search for wisdom cannot be understood as truly serious. 14:7 Avoiding the company of fools is recommended again here (cf. 13:20; 17:12; 26:4–5; 26:1, 8). Verse 7 seems to give the reason: one can learn nothing from them. The Hebrew is difficult; verse 7a is a command and there is no antithesis. The tense of verse 71) is unusual (lit. “and you do/did not know lips of knowledge”). The phrase, “lips of knowledge,” is unique. 14:8 Antithetic. The style is ...

372. Proverbs of Solomon

Proverbs 18:1-24

Understanding Series

Roland E. Murphy

18:1 The MT is ambiguous and the meaning uncertain. The NIV understands it as a description of the conduct of an unfriendly (lit. “separated”) and foolish person. 18:2 Antithetic. Without understanding, the fool lacks the sense to be silent or to learn, and instead reveals an (empty) mind. 18:3 Synonymous. The saying describes the sad effects of wicked and shameful conduct. 18:4 Antithetic? Juxtapositional. The NIV implies an antithesis between a and b. The disjunctive but, which is not in the MT, is ...

373. Proverbs of Solomon

Proverbs 21:1-31

Understanding Series

Roland E. Murphy

... (cf. 4:16). 21:11 Synonymous. The issue here is whether the simple (11a) and he are referring to the same person. In 19:25, a similar proverb, they are distinguished. The mocker’s fate is a strong lesson for the simple; but one who is wise learns through wisdom. 21:12 Many modern translations are in agreement with the NIV, but there are problems with the Hebrew text: (1) nowhere in the OT is the Lord called The Righteous One (not even in Job 34:17) and the NIV provides another choice in the margin ...

374. More Proverbs of Solomon

Proverbs 26:1-28

Understanding Series

Roland E. Murphy

... two phrases, but the verse cannot be translated with any certainty. The NIV compares to a careless archer anyone who will hire a fool or a mere transient. See the Additional Notes. 26:11 See 2 Peter 2:22. This explicit comparison underscores the failure of fools to learn; they merely continue in their folly. 26:12 Self-deception (to be wise in one’s own estimation) is in a sense the greatest folly (and even the “wise” should be aware of it! cf. v. 16a; 28:11a). The blindness of such a person is simply ...

375. Sayings of Agur

Proverbs 30:1-33

Understanding Series

Roland E. Murphy

... Genesis 16:1–6 (Sarai and Hagar). These are all instances of things being topsy-turvy. 30:24–28 The 3/4 pattern is broken, and a list of four creatures is given: small, but extremely wise. These are examples of various kinds of “wisdom” that can be learned from the conduct of insignificant animals. The ant proves that to be wise does not depend upon size; it is diligent and provides for its future (cf. 6:6–8). The coney, or badger, is small but it uses the crevices in rocky precipices for a safe ...

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