Sermon and Worship Resources

Showing 651 to 675 of 972 results

1 Thessalonians 2:1-16

Understanding Series

David J. Williams

... held good by the time that Paul wrote. The dative case that follows must also be taken into account. NIV reads among you, but it may be better to take the dative as meaning “towards you,” in which case the Thessalonians are exclusively in view, and the three adverbs are virtually synonymous. In short, the missionaries’ conduct towards them was irreproachable. Proper conduct is an essential factor in any missionary enterprise, whether in Paul’s world or in today’s Western society which has equally ...

652. Jesus Made Like His Brothers

Hebrews 2:5-18

Understanding Series

Donald A. Hagner

... is an extensive treatise on the work of Christ, our high priest, in accomplishing atonement for sin. This was already announced in 1:3 and is the reason for the incarnation and death of Jesus, as we have seen from the present chapter. The author uses almost exclusively the word hamartia for “sin.” See W. Günther, NIDNTT, vol. 3, pp. 577–83. The words make atonement for the sins describe not so much the effect of the high priest’s work, as the work itself. The key Greek word (hilaskesthai) has been ...

653. The Christian and the World

James 4:1-12

Understanding Series

Peter H. Davids

... . As with Jesus, there is no “both/and.” They want friendship with the world (which may imply that even the world does not want their halfhearted allegiance); they are therefore God’s enemy. No husband will be pleased with less than an exclusive relationship; God will never accept less than total allegiance. 4:5 To his condemnation of their behavior James adds a warning, Or do you think Scripture says without reason that … They have read the Old Testament, and only willful suppression of its message ...

654. Praying for Endurance and Healing

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

Understanding Series

Peter H. Davids

... to the way of death; to wander from the way of life is to stumble onto the broad road to hell (Matt. 7:13–14). The ways of life and death do not cross, for as James has argued (4:4), the world and God are mutually exclusive. The picture brings John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress to mind. The truth is not intellectual facts but a way of life. James is not concerned about doctrinal error, the dotting of eschatological i’s or the crossing of ecclesiological t’s, but about one central truth: Jesus ...

655. The Sin and Doom of Godless Men

Jude 1:1-16

Understanding Series

Norman Hillyer

... angels. They became disgruntled with their positions of authority. Their lofty station, Jude says, the angels did not keep (tērein, to watch over). They failed to do their duty in guarding something of great value. They were not single-minded in maintaining the exclusive position for which God had purposely created them. They chose to look elsewhere and abandoned their own home. They deserted in order to further their own ends. According to Isaiah 14:12; 24:21–22, pride drives some to rebel (Isa. 14:13 ...

656. At Mount Sinai

Exodus 19:1-25

Understanding Series

James K. Bruckner

... read as a declaration of their intent to receive that covenant. On the other hand, the Abrahamic covenant was also clearly on the table in Exodus, both before and after the meeting at Sinai. The reference to the Lord’s covenant need not be read exclusively. God’s work in the world extended through the exodus and at Sinai, but this did not supersede the earlier covenants. Sinai’s grounding in the promises made to the cultures of the world through Abraham would become dramatically evident in 32:13–16 ...

657. The New Stone Tablets

Exodus 34:1-28

Understanding Series

James K. Bruckner

... –13. Verse 21 reiterates the fourth commandment of Sabbath rest from 20:8–10. Verses 22–26 reiterate the Festivals of Weeks and Ingathering from 23:16–19. This summary of the book highlights the laws of worship, the need to love God exclusively, and the yearly calendar. In addition, the text mentions the Ten Commandments as a group (v. 28). These verses have been called the “ritual decalogue” since they integrate three of the ten with laws concerning worship practices and mention the new set of ...

658. The Covenant Renewed at Shechem

Joshua 24:1-27

Understanding Series

J. Gordon Harris

... them to put away alien gods, and urge them to serve the Lord their God without reservation. Joshua places the alternatives plainly before them and calls them to choose where they will place their loyalty. Joshua 24 challenges them to serve the Lord (Yahweh) exclusively. Joshua reviews the history of God’s mighty acts as a messenger reporting the words of God in the first person (24:2–13). A prophetic messenger formula, This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says, puts this history into God’s ...

659. The Song of Deborah

Judges 5:1-31

Understanding Series

Cheryl A. Brown

... the Lord’s enemies. Indeed, the Lord led them in battle (vv. 4–5). Whereas this cosmic perspective is barely hinted at in the narrative, it becomes a major theme in the Song, from the beginning (v. 2). In fact, the Song presents the battle exclusively from the cosmic perspective (vv. 19–20). This interweaving of the Lord’s purposes with those of Israel is further expressed by the repeated appearance of the names Yahweh and Israel in the first section of the Song. Imagery about Sinai in verses 4–5 ...

660. Simeon

1 Chronicles 4:24-43

Understanding Series

Louis C. Jonker

... not use the term “inheritance,” however. He was probably insinuating that the Simeonites were settled on Judahite land but the land still belonged to Judah. 4:33b The verb translated kept a genealogical record (alternatively “took a census”) is quite prominent in Chronicles. It occurs exclusively in Ezra-Nehemiah and Chronicles. Fifteen of its twenty occurrences are in Chronicles (1 Chron. 4:33; 5:1, 7, 17; 7:5, 7, 9, 40; 9:1, 22; 2 Chron. 12:15; 31:16, 17, 18, 19). It refers to the act of enrolling ...

661. Issachar

1 Chronicles 7:1-5

Understanding Series

Louis C. Jonker

... and Num. 26). From some he quotes selectively, while of others he makes no use at all, such as sections in Numbers 26 and Joshua 16–19 dealing with the tribes under discussion. The style of the majority of genealogies provided here (with the exclusion of those of Ephraim and Manasseh) is different from what we have seen thus far in the Chronicler’s genealogies. For example, the inclusion of the numbers of “fighting men” in the different families reminds scholars of military census lists, of which we ...

662. The Genealogy of Saul the Benjamite

1 Chronicles 8:1-40

Understanding Series

Louis C. Jonker

... 2 Chron. 1:3). 8:33–40 This subsection is actually a continuation of the genealogy provided in 8:29–32, since it traces the lineage of Jeiel through Ner and Kish to Saul. This lineage will be taken up again in 9:35–44, a section exclusively dedicated to the genealogy of Saul. It closes in 8:40 with the remark all these were the descendants of Benjamin. With this remark an arc is completed from 8:1, where the Chronicler opened the Benjaminite genealogy. Additional Notes 8:1–40 Because this genealogy ...

663. God's Promise to David

1 Chronicles 17:1-15

Understanding Series

Louis C. Jonker

... the covenant of the LORD” has the same inappropriate quality as the impulsive gesture by Uzzah when the ark was carried from Kiriath Jearim. It was not the bringing of the ark to Jerusalem that was denounced when Uzzah was killed by Yahweh, but the improper, exclusively human effort exerted in doing so (see commentary on 1 Chron. 13). The same applies here: It is not David’s idea of building a permanent abode for the ark that is denounced, but rather his doing this with blood on his hands. Just as the ...

664. Preparations for the Temple

1 Chronicles 22:2-19

Understanding Series

Louis C. Jonker

... their heart and soul to seeking the LORD their God. Also those who will work on the temple construction should adhere to the requirements of “seeking the LORD.” Additional Notes 22:2 The Hebrew phrase the house of God (beyt haʾelohim) occurs almost exclusively in postexilic biblical texts. It occurs once in Judges, once in Ecclesiastes, and once in Daniel, but eighteen times in Ezra-Nehemiah and thirty-four times in Chronicles. The occurrence here in 22:2 is the first use of the phrase in the narrative ...

665. Ezra's Prayer about Intermarriage

Ezra 9:1-15

Understanding Series

Leslie C. Allen

... , the reference in 6:21 could only be to nonexiled Judeans who renounced pagan assimilation, so that the crossing of racial lines was not a factor. It is clear from Deuteronomy 7:4 that religion was the basic ground of the exclusion. There was a fear of reverse conversion, of seduction from worshiping Israel’s God only. This nightmare evidently loomed large for the early, fragile community of returned exiles. They felt overwhelmed by an established, culturally heterogeneous population, in a setting where ...

666. The People's Confession of Sin

Ezra 10:1-17

Understanding Series

Leslie C. Allen

... the divine judgment on preexilic sin (9:7). He issued a call for confession and reform, interpreting the latter step as the divine will. Separation from “the peoples of the land” (NRSV) necessitated separation from foreign wives, in order to maintain the exclusive status of a community made up, in principle, of returned exiles and their families. The assembly gave its enthusiastic support to Ezra’s call, but it also made practical proposals about the details of the execution. Ezra seems to have been ...

667. Esther Made Queen

Esther 2:1-18

Understanding Series

Timothy S. Laniak

... Greek campaign. Xerxes came home seeking comfort in his harem. It is possible that Xerxes set in place the plan to replace Vashti before he arrived home in Susa. 2:3 To bring all these beautiful girls: Herodotus reports that queens in ancient Persia were exclusively chosen from seven noble families who had helped Darius overthrow a usurper to the throne (Hist. 1.135; 3.84; 7.61). However, Amestris (the queen identified at this time by Herodotus) was the daughter of Otanes, son of Sisamnes—not from one of ...

668. Mordecai Persuades Esther to Help

Esther 4:1-17

Understanding Series

Timothy S. Laniak

... is the definite form of the word, hammaqom (“the place”), that refers to the dwelling place, not “another place.” It would be very unexpected for a subtle reference to Zion to surface in this story that otherwise has such an exclusively Diaspora perspective. It is still likely that Mordecai is expressing his belief that God will deliver through some means, whether through Esther or not. The whole Jewish community has been fasting and mourning, presumably in prayer for deliverance. Esther fasts for ...

669. Mordecai Honored

Esther 6:1-14

Understanding Series

Timothy S. Laniak

... more” than) himself, responded in terms of his own fantasies. Had not the line between his own wishes and the king’s command become quite permeable in chapter 3? Wasn’t the king, of late, quite magnanimous when the queen had approached unbidden? Didn’t the exclusive guest list for the queen’s banquets suggest a shared admiration for him by the royal couple? And now he finds the king waiting for him early in the morning with what appears to be a blank check! Haman has arrived at the crack of dawn ...

670. Proverbs of Solomon

Proverbs 22:1-16

Understanding Series

Roland E. Murphy

... to the poor is a common topos (cf. 14:21b; 19:17; Sir. 7:32). The blessing comes both from God and from humans. 22:10 Synthetic. The mocker (the consistent translation in the NIV of the somewhat difficult Hebrew lēṣ—a word that occurs almost exclusively in Proverbs and Psalms) appears in many contexts; here he is seen in particular as a troublemaker. 22:11 The MT is hardly translatable. The NIV inserts and whose, but the entire saying is not convincing.The NJPS interprets this as a three-line saying ...

671. I Am a Rose of Sharon

Song of Songs 2:1-17

Understanding Series

Elizabeth Huwiler

... Hb. particle hinnēh (“Hey!” “Notice this!”) is used three times (twice by the woman, in 2:8 and 2:9, and once by the man as quoted by the woman in 2:11). The NIV translates “Look! and “See!” Although the Hebrew word is not exclusively visual, it does describe an immediate and noteworthy perception. The section is structured with multiple inclusions. The reference to mountains and hills (2:8) combines with the comparison of the man to a gazelle or stag (2:9) to form a link with the call to the ...

672. How Beautiful You Are

Song of Songs 4:1-16

Understanding Series

Elizabeth Huwiler

... (as did the imagery of 2:14) but also that there is danger in her environment. The reference to predatory beasts (lions, leopards) relates loosely to the foxes in 2:15. After verse 9, in which he describes the woman’s effect on his heart, the man focuses exclusively on her. He does not mention himself again until 5:1, after she has spoken. The man’s celebration of the woman in verses 10 and 11 recalls her similar praise of him at the beginning of the Song. Both 4:10 and 1:2–3 contain the ...

673. How the Gold Has Lost Its Luster

Lamentations 4:1-22

One Volume

Tremper Longman III

... , food. They have moved from riches to poverty. The second colon of the verse provides another contrast between former glory and present gloom. Before, they were nurtured in purple. Only the richest people could afford the clothes dyed with purple. Indeed, it was often the exclusive property of royalty. But now they sit on an ash heap. The people of God are thus like Job who moves from great prosperity to sit on an ash heap (Job 2:8). Both are reversals of Hannah, who, citing Psalm 113, says: He raises ...

674. Judgment of Israel's Neighbors

Amos 1:1-2:5

Understanding Series

Elizabeth Achtemeier

... dwelt in the midst of his people above the ark in the Holy of Holies and where alone he would put his name, according to Deuteronomy (12:5 et passim). The worship of northern Israel was no worship and would soon come to an end. Deuteronomy learned its exclusive lesson well from the prophets. Additional Notes 1:2 The NIV has omitted the “And,” that is at the beginning of the v. in the original Hb. Because Yahweh’s voice is often connected with thunder in the OT (Ps. 29; Exod. 19:19 RSV), the NIV has ...

675. Clean Garments for the High Priest

Zechariah 3:1-10

Understanding Series

Pamela J. Scalise

... walk in my ways as God expected every Israelite to do (Deut. 5:33; 10:12; 30:16). The second condition, keep my requirements, means to perform the service due to the Lord. This is a technical term in Leviticus, Numbers, and Ezekiel for the duties assigned exclusively to the priests and Levites. The descendants of Aaron alone were responsible for the sanctuary, altar, and offerings, “so that wrath will not fall on the Israelites again” (Num. 18:5; see also Num. 18:8; Lev. 22:9; Ezek. 40:46; 44:16; 48:11 ...

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