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Showing 976 to 1000 of 1354 results

976. Eastern Tribes Return Home

Joshua 22:1-34

Understanding Series

J. Gordon Harris

... The LORD has made the Jordan a boundary between us and you—you Reubenites and Gadites! You have no share in the LORD.” So your descendants might cause ours to stop fearing the LORD (22:24–25). 22:26–31 In this way the eastern tribes defend themselves against charges of building an alternative altar for sacrifices. They deny building the altar in rebellion against God: That is why we said, “Let us get ready and build an altar—but not for burnt offerings or sacrifices.” On the contrary, it is to ...

977. Gideon

Judges 6:1-40

Understanding Series

Cheryl A. Brown

... that Joash give them his son, but all he gave them was a theological lecture: So are you [Hb. emphatic] going to plead Baal’s cause? . . . Whoever fights [against; my translation] him shall be put to death by morning! If Baal really is a god, he can defend himself when someone breaks down his altar. Joash expressed a single point—Baal is not a real god—in two different ways. He argued that if someone were to fight against Baal, he or she would be put to death (implying by the god himself) by morning ...

978. Gideon's Ephod

Judges 8:22-27

Understanding Series

Cheryl A. Brown

Gideon’s Ephod and Death: These final episodes in Gideon’s life reveal two sides of Israel’s judge: Gideon the zealous defender of the covenant and Gideon the apostate defector of the covenant, who also led Israel down the same path. This is the first time we have met the idea, although not in the exact words, that Israel did evil in the eyes of the Lord before the judge’s death ( ...

979. The Genealogy of David

Ruth 4:13-22

Understanding Series

Michael S. Moore

... a now lost Book of Obed (the hypothesis of Sasson), the Davidic genealogy in 4:18–22 is instead the foundation upon which everything else in the book depends. That is, the story of Ruth, Naomi, and Boaz is written to explain and defend the genealogy, not vice versa. Nielsen posits a rather involved political scenario to support this hypothesis: David’s enemies—the family of Saul, or the “circles supporting the traditions of Samuel”—want to see him defamed as a “foreigner.” The author of Ruth ...

980. List of the Family Heads Returning With Ezra

Ezra 8:1-14

Understanding Series

Leslie C. Allen

... , NJB). 8:31 The word protected connotes a lack of anticipated hostility. A more careful translation is “delivered” (NRSV) or “saved” (REB, NJPS), implying that attacks did occur. Similarly in v. 22, “protect” means literally “help from” with the sense of “help in defending against.” 8:33 We weighed out is lit. a passive form, “were weighed” (NRSV), but there is no reason to doubt that Ezra’s memoirs are still being cited at this point (see R. A. Bowman, “The Book of Ezra and the ...

981. Artaxerxes Sends Nehemiah to Jerusalem

Nehemiah 2:1-10

Understanding Series

Leslie C. Allen

... spiritual truth and error. The clashes with neighboring political authorities encountered in the first mission and the mixed marriages that marked the second will be climactically combined in this final mission. Nehemiah’s appointment to make Jerusalem well defended and self-sufficient must have meant a shift in the political balance of power between Judah and the neighboring regions, while his subsequent religious measures broke up close involvement by marriage and friendship with leading Judean families ...

982. Opposition to the Rebuilding

Nehemiah 4:1-23

Understanding Series

Leslie C. Allen

... of an attack he himself, presumably on constant patrol as he supervised the work, would respond to it and a trumpeter accompanying him would sound the alarm. Then the mobilized people, and evidently the permanent force, would converge on the isolated working party to defend it. In closing, Nehemiah assures them that their divine ally would support them and fight on their side (v. 14). The result of Nehemiah’s measures from verse 16 onward was that the workers were able to work long days with high morale ...

983. Nehemiah Helps the Poor

Nehemiah 5:1-19

Understanding Series

Leslie C. Allen

... appear as a refrain in Nehemiah’s memoirs. Here it is of a personal and positive nature, as in 13:22, rather than negative and related to other people, such as we will find in 6:14. This one seems to reflect Nehemiah’s attempt to defend himself against subsequent criticisms of his administration. Verses 14–18, as well as 4:10–5:13, gave him an opportunity to plead his integrity over against those who were maligning his character. The editor retained these petitions from the memoirs, which he used as ...

984. The List of the Exiles Who Returned

Nehemiah 7:4-73a

Understanding Series

Leslie C. Allen

... were responsible for the security of the gates, and they were given instructions for the daily procedures. Nehemiah also ordered them to enlist vigilantes from the small pool of city residents—some to guard gates near their homes and others to defend posts assigned to them on a roster. 7:4–5 These expedients were obviously makeshift and indicated a serious problem. Jerusalem as yet functioned as an administrative and religious center for the provincial community, rather than as the metropolis it had ...

985. The New Residents of Jerusalem

Nehemiah 11:1-36

Understanding Series

Leslie C. Allen

... ” for able men here and in v. 14, clarifying the military connotation. This military language, also found in “chief officer” in vv. 9 and 14 (compare 2 Kgs. 25:19), suggests that the list was originally compiled to record the militia that could be mobilized to defend the city. 11:9 The Heb. for over the Second District of the city must grammatically mean “second in command of the city” (NJB and NJPS; compare the NRSV and REB). 11:10 The related text in 1 Chr. 9:10 has two independent names for ...

986. The King's Edict in Behalf of the Jews

Esther 8:1-17

Understanding Series

Timothy S. Laniak

... with haste to give the Jews time to prepare for military combat. The language echoes that of 3:13, for Haman’s original decree was also delivered with a sense of urgency. The effect of the decree was to publicize the right of the Jews to defend (v. 11; avenge, v. 13) themselves and take plunder. Everyone in the empire is hereby alerted to the shift in royal support to the Jewish side in a scheduled civil war. This is the formal legitimization of a state-sponsored, Jewish military response—a sanctioned ...

987. Proverbs of Solomon

Proverbs 22:1-16

Understanding Series

Roland E. Murphy

... (is) his friend. For various proposals, see Plöger (Sprüche). 22:12 Some commentators (Gemser, Sprüche; H. Ringgren, Sprüche [Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1962]) take the abstract for the concrete: “the one who is knowledge,” or the wise person. McKane (Proverbs) stoutly defends the MT “as a basis for belief in the operation of a theodicy in much the same way as 15:3.” 22:16 The Hb. lô (to bring increase—to him) of the MT seems to refer back to the oppressor—but this hardly squares ...

988. Sayings of the Wise

Proverbs 22:17--24:22

Understanding Series

Roland E. Murphy

... . See 26:4. As fool and unteachable, such a person is simply incorrigible. See Sirach 22:9–15. 23:10–11 An admonition with motivational rationale. For verse 10 see 22:28 and comment. For the spirit of the saying, see 22:22–23. The Hb. gōʾēl, or Defender, is the close relative that comes to the aid of the needy; here it is applied to the Lord (cf. Job 19:25). 23:12 An admonition and chiastic arrangement. Heart and ears occur as in the opening instruction in 22:17. Several appeals to listen and to ...

989. Drought, Famine, Sword

Jeremiah 14:1--15:21

Understanding Series

Tremper Longman III

... cold shoulder toward them, so even if they fast and cry out, God will not listen. This attitude is reminiscent of Proverbs 1:28 where Woman Wisdom will not respond to the people’s repentance. They simply had waited too long. Jeremiah steps in to defend the people. He tells them that prophets are preaching peace to them. They are not warning them about the coming judgment, but precisely the opposite. God speaks to this issue by calling them lying prophets. They are not sent from God. The people should have ...

990. Remember, O Lord, What Has Happened to Us

Lamentations 5:1-22

One Volume

Tremper Longman III

... for putting their trust in other nations. The proper attitude was to trust God, not Egypt, Assyria, or any other human power to save them. After all, God was a warrior who demonstrated beginning with the Red Sea crossing his ability to defend his people over evil human kingdoms. It is well documented that Judah under Jehoiakim and Zedekiah pursued a relationship with Egypt to rescue it from Babylon. Egypt constantly let Judah down. The reference to Assyria is more problematic. Assyria had been completely ...

991. Israel’s Ill-Placed Confidence

Amos 5:18-27

Understanding Series

Elizabeth Achtemeier

... right conduct (Deut. 4:4 8; Ps. 19:7–9). He requires justice of all his creatures (cf. Gen. 9:5–6; Exod. 21:12, 28–29). God also judges righteously (Gen. 18:25; 1 Kings 8:32; Ps. 9:4, 9; Jer. 9:24) and defends and vindicates the weak and oppressed (Deut. 10:18; Ps. 103:6). The responsibility of maintaining justice in the human community, however, he delegates to its leaders, such as civil magistrates or political officials, and requires them to execute this responsibility with integrity, equity, and ...

992. Locusts, Fire and a Plumb Line

Amos 7:1-9

Understanding Series

Elizabeth Achtemeier

... prophets both before and after him, he has vigorously exercised the prophetic function of interceding for the good of his nation. We do not often realize that the prophets of the OT not only proclaimed God’s judgment on their sinful folk but also defended that folk in tearful intercession before the throne of God (cf. Jer. 9:1). Moses, the first and greatest of the prophets, undertook strenuous asceticism to turn aside God’s judgment (Deut. 9:17–20, 25–29). Jeremiah pleaded so frequently with God ...

993. Judgment on Israel's Enemies

Zechariah 9:1-8

Understanding Series

Pamela J. Scalise

... house because of an army (mitsabah)” (the NIV paraphrases this first sentence). This promise reverses the threat against Jerusalem in Isaiah 29:3, “I will encamp (wekhaniti) against you all around; / I will encircle you with towers (mutsab).” God promises to defend my house against marauding forces (“one who crosses over and returns”) / Never again will an oppressor overrun my people. This, too, is a reversal of the threats in Zechariah 7:14 and Ezekiel 33:28. The desolation of divine judgment on ...

994. The Coming of Zion's King

Zechariah 9:9-13

Understanding Series

Pamela J. Scalise

... Zechariah 3:8 and 6:12 call the future Messiah “Branch” (tsemakh), and verse 9 picks up the other term, “righteous,” from Jeremiah 23. Psalm 72 celebrates the ideal king whom God has endowed with “righteousness” by which he will judge the people, “defend the afflicted . . . and save the children of the needy” (Ps. 72:1–4). The king’s righteous administration is the ground on which his people and land will flourish and the nations will acknowledge his rule (Ps. 72:5–11). The suffering ...

995. Two Shepherds

Zechariah 11:4-17

Understanding Series

Pamela J. Scalise

... under judgment (v. 6). The prophet began by caring for the doomed flock, particularly the oppressed of the flock. A good shepherd strengthens the weak and binds up the injured (see Ezek. 34:4). The shepherd used staffs as implements for guiding and defending the flock. The symbolic names for these staffs, Favor and Union, bode well for the survival of the flock under this shepherd’s care. Verse 8 moves into the political sphere, as the shepherd turns against other shepherds. The shepherd’s voice appears ...

996. The Lord Comes and Reigns

Zechariah 14:1-21

Understanding Series

Pamela J. Scalise

... the Lord’s reign will be acknowledged and experienced universally. Actions against the nations and changes in the shape of the inanimate creation will be visible indications of Yahweh’s royal rule. 14:1–2 Although the book of Zechariah includes many promises to defend Jerusalem (e.g., 2:5), this prophecy announces a final, successful assault on the city. This Day of the Lord will begin as “darkness, not light,” as in Amos 5:18, for the attackers will subdue the city and divide its plunder there ...

997. The Vision of Obadiah

Obadiah 1:1-21

Understanding Series

Elizabeth Achtemeier

... of the Dead Sea in three great steps of sandstone cliffs to a height of more than 5,000 feet. A maze of mountains, cliffs, chasms, rocky defiles, and stony plateaus, with arable land mostly on the east and in its wider defiles, Edom was easily defended. In Obadiah’s time, it was densely populated, with abundant water in its gorges and ample food for all. It thought itself secure and independent, superior to its conquered brother-nation Judah. 1–4 But cliffs and mountains are no barrier to the God who ...

998. Timeout at Tiberias

John 21:1-14

Sermon

King Duncan

... to engage the enemy, they encountered seven hundred French soldiers and their Indian allies. They were outnumbered more than two-to-one. Washington and his troops were driven back to Fort Necessity. Unfortunately the location of the fort made it impossible to defend because it was surrounded by hills that were the perfect hiding place from which the French and Indian fighters could attack. To make it worse, many of Washington’s men got drunk. In nine short hours, with thirty dead, seventy wounded, and ...

999. The First Two Days: John the Baptist’s Message

John 1:19-28, John 1:29-34

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

... have been true at Bethany. 1:29 Lamb of God: C. H. Dodd (The Interpretation of the Fourth Gospel [Cambridge: University Press, 1958], pp. 230–38) argued for a Jewish background to the title from apocalyptic references to the Messiah as a powerful young ram who defends the flock of God against its adversaries and puts them to flight. This is an appealing suggestion and one that may well be correct, but the evidence is meager (only Enoch 90.38 and Testament of Joseph 19.8, the latter of which may actually ...

1000. The Healing at the Pool

John 5:1-15, John 5:16-30

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

... means to have God’s life as a secure possession that cannot be taken away. In itself, the phrase does not include the notion that one has the power to confer that life on others, but such translations as “source of life” (both GNB and Jerusalem Bible) can be defended on the basis of the context, especially the parallelism with v, 21. 5:27 The Son of Man: Although the expression Son of Man in Greek lacks the definite article (the only place in the Gospels where this is so), it is still to be taken as a ...

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