Sermon and Worship Resources

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Psalm 66:1-20

Teach the Text

C. Hassell Bullock

... complete but most probably to represent the sacrificial system generally. Interpretive Insights Title A song. A psalm. See Psalm 65 for the same designations “song” and “psalm” in the title. 66:1 Shout for joy to God, all the earth!The call to worship is duplicated in Psalms 98:4 and 100:1, except for the use in those later instances of the divine name (YHWH). 66:3 How awesome are your deeds! . . . your enemies cringe before you. The word “how” (mah) is an exclamation (Ps. 8:1, 9) and ...

152. “When You Ascended on High, You Took Many Captives”

Psalm 68:1-35

Teach the Text

C. Hassell Bullock

... brought the ark from the house of Obed-Edom to Jerusalem with much rejoicing (2 Sam. 6:12).6 Interpretive Insights 68:1 May God arise.Except for the name ’elohim (“God”) and the pronouns “his” instead of “your,” this is a virtual duplication of the ark saying in Numbers 10:35. 68:3–4 may the righteous be glad . . . who rides on the clouds . . . his name is the Lord.Four verbs for rejoice reinforce the idea: “be glad,” “rejoice” (‘lts), “be happy,” and “rejoice” (‘lz ...

153. “Even When I Am Old and Gray, Do Not Forsake Me, My God”

Psalm 71:1-24

Teach the Text

C. Hassell Bullock

... and savior of the needy (72:4). So the stage is set for the community’s most trying era, the Babylonian exile, when they were reshaped into the people of God through suffering and humiliation. Psalms 69–72 share some similar and duplicate terms that suggest these psalms constitute a cadre of poems intended to form an appropriate conclusion to Book 2. See “Additional Insights” following the unit on Psalm 72; see also the sidebar in the unit on Psalm 70. Outline/Structure The following outline ...

154. Nebuchadnezzar’s Testimony and Tree Dream

Daniel 4:1-18

Teach the Text

Ronald W. Pierce

... , the introduction to Nebuchadnezzar’s judgment. First, without knowledge of the one true God, worldly power and wisdom cannot adequately explain the experiences of mere mortals. Second, God works by his Spirit through his faithful servants in ways the world cannot duplicate or understand. Third, the Most High God is sovereign over all earthly kingdoms and rules them as he pleases. Teaching the Text 1. The emptiness of human wisdom and accomplishments. It is no coincidence that the failure of pagan kings ...

155. Amaziah King of Judah and Jeroboam II King of Israel

2 Kings 14:1-29

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... the last time the city will be invaded and looted, with prisoners taken. The same royal pride will resurface in the Babylonian conquest in the days ahead. The regnal notice for the northern king Jehoash may seem out of place or a duplication of the earlier note, but it does serve to effectively introduce the demise of Amaziah (14:15–22). Overall, Jehoash scores higher in terms of military and political effectiveness, especially when Amaziah dies as an embarrassed victim of an internal plot. The narrative ...

156. Psalm 43

Psalm 43:1-5

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

Psalm 43:2 parallels 42:9, and 43:5 essentially duplicates 42:5, 11; however, Psalm 43 is not simply a smaller version of Psalm 42. Psalm 43 explodes with greater emotional intensity than does Psalm 42—there are more commands and entreaties (significantly more considering the relative sizes of the two psalms). In the parallel verses (43:2 and 42: ...

157. Things Great and Unsearchable

Jeremiah 33:1-26

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... and people tumble over one another in this passage. Divine pardon, energetic praise songs, enterprising shepherds, established royal and priestly lines, and a united and permanent people—all are part of the kaleidoscope of future assurance. In content the chapter duplicates and slightly expands chapters 30–31. The promise of restoration extends to both city and country (33:1–13). When judgment has been completed, wholeness will be God’s gift. God’s general stance of goodwill contrasts with the ...

158. The High Priest of a New Covenant

Hebrews 8:1-13

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... and 10:2. Hebrews was written to a community inclined to regard the covenant life and experience of Israel, especially the wilderness period, as a paradigm for her own. These Jewish Christians were disposed to feel that they required nothing more than to duplicate the pattern of life with its outward forms established by their forebears. That pattern, in their minds, was the Mosaic covenant, but in fact, they conceived of that covenant not as the proclamation of the gospel (Heb. 4:1) but in legalistic and ...

159. The Seven Bowls: Why God Delays Ultimate Justice until the End

Revelation 16:1-21

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... dragon, the beast (of the sea), and the false prophet (16:12). Intensifying the second Egyptian plague of frogs (Exod. 8:1–15), the demonic frogs of Revelation are heralds of false ideologies and lies (e.g., the pax Romana). These false powers can duplicate the miraculous (cf. Exod. 7:11, 22), but their primary weapon of choice is deception. Fooled by evil, the kings of earth align themselves with the beast to their own destruction. Armageddon, which means “the hill of Megiddo” in Hebrew (16:16), is ...

160. The Woman and the Dragon

Revelation 12:1--13:1a

Understanding Series

Robert W. Wall

... as one result of Christ’s triumph. However strong and troublesome Satan might seem, he is nevertheless a defeated foe. Second, the Platonic cosmology of John’s hellenistic audience would lead it to assume that what has transpired in heaven will have its historical duplicate on earth. Thus, if the heavenly and invisible war between God and the Evil One has ended with God’s triumph through the exalted Lamb, then the Evil One will surely be defeated by God in an earthly and visible war (cf. Rev. 19 ...

161. David Destroys the Amalekites

1 Samuel 30:1-31

Understanding Series

Mary J. Evans

... had not been affected. The attack may have been less comprehensive than it could have been; nevertheless to David’s troops it was devastating. They had just engaged in a long march with great tension on the outward journey when they did not know if their duplicity would be discovered. With the relief of tension on the return trip was also probably a frustration that they had not been able to take any action, and the mixed emotions would have added to their exhaustion. To find that their sanctuary had been ...

162. Job's Second Test

Job 2:1-10

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

... as the devil’s tool. Her advice that Job should, “Curse God and die!,” could appear to be an attempt to urge Job to fulfill the Satan’s prediction. But the question that prefaces this, “Are you still holding on to your integrity?” so nearly duplicates God’s earlier affirmation of Job’s tenacious faith (2:3) that her advice simply states the crux of the issue in its most severe form. Will Job choose integrity and fear of God? Or will he end his pain by cursing God? The interchange between ...

163. Entering the Lord’s House

Psalm 5:1-12

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

... (Lev. 1:8–9, 12; 1 Kgs. 18:33) could indicate that a sacrifice was to be offered with the singing of the psalm. 5:6 The LORD abhors: Instead of Hb. ytʿb, “he abhors,” we should perhaps read, ttʿb, “you abhor,” since the duplicate Hb. t could easily have been omitted. 5:8 My enemies is lit. “my lurkers” or “watchers” (Hb. šôrēr), a Polel participle derived from šwr. The verb’s negative connotation, “to watch stealthily, lie in ambush,” is evidenced in Jer. 5:26; Hos. 13:7 (see ...

164. Vindication for the Sick Person

Psalm 41:1-13

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

... for his death (vv. 7–8) so his real estate can become theirs. What makes matters worse is that they pretend to make comforting visits (whenever one comes to see me) and one of them was even my close friend, whom I trusted. Not only is there duplicity, there is also betrayal. 41:10–12 The petition of verse 10 echoes the quoted petition of verse 4 (“have mercy on me”) but this one focuses on restoration and retribution: raise me up, that I may repay them. The speaker “knows” Yahweh is pleased with ...

165. Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream

Daniel 2:1-23

Understanding Series

William Nelson

... was added as an introductory chapter, the author either did not notice the discrepancies or did not think them important enough to smooth over. 2:2 The first word in the series of wise men, magicians, is the same term used in Exodus for the Egyptian magicians who could duplicate some of the plagues and miracles of Moses (Exod. 8:3, 14, 15; 9:11). It is also used for those called upon by Pharaoh to interpret his dream in the Joseph cycle (Gen. 41:8, 24). Its use here may be influenced by that. A similar word ...

166. Daniel’s Prayer

Daniel 9:1-19

Understanding Series

William Nelson

... a way that was appropriate to the exilic period. Then, there is the observation that one could remove the prayer without losing anything significant, because it is possible to jump from verse 3 to verse 21 without sacrificing coherence. Furthermore, duplications where the prayer begins and ends suggest redactional activity: verses 3 and 4 are competing introductions, and verses 20 and 21 are independent transitions from the prayer to the appearance of Gabriel. These are strong objections, but if the prayer ...

167. Paying Taxes to Caeser

Luke 20:20-26

Understanding Series

Craig A. Evans

... .) Since, according to 20:20, his opponents were trying to build a case against him for the governor, such a popular answer would have provided them the very grounds that they sought for accusing and arresting Jesus. However, Jesus saw through their duplicity and requested to be shown a denarius. Ironically, the very ones hoping to lure Jesus into making an answer that would have been popular among his fellow Jews, but seditious to the civil authorities, have in their possession money that symbolized the ...

168. Jesus the Lamb of God

John 1:29-34

Understanding Series

J. Ramsey Michaels

... variant. It is easy to see how a copyist might have changed “Chosen One of God” to the better-known Son of God, and difficult to imagine a change in the opposite direction. Also the titles given to Jesus in this chapter are, as a rule, not duplicated, and Son of God does appear later in 1:49. Yet the manuscript evidence for Son of God is very strong. That the copyists of the most ancient manuscripts were quite willing to let an unusual or unfamiliar title for Christ stand if they judged it authentic ...

169. The Glory of the New Covenant

2 Corinthians 3:7-17; 4:1-6

Understanding Series

James M. Scott

... that the obstinate Israelites might not gaze into “the consequence” (to telos)—i.e., the judgment—of that which was being rendered ineffective by the veil, that is, the Sinaitic covenant itself (cf. 3:7). In the words of S. Hafemann, “Far from duplicity, Moses’ merciful intention was to keep Israel from being judged by the glory on his face, which was the telos of that glory in response to the hardened nature of the people.” In contrast to Moses, Paul proclaims the gospel with boldness because ...

170. Listening and Doing

James 1:19-27, James 1:1-18

Understanding Series

Peter H. Davids

... verse is the Old Testament idea of doing the law (Deut. 28:53; 29:28; cf. 1 Macc. 2:16; Sirach 19:20). The teaching of Jesus was the new law for the Christian community (Rom. 8:2; 1 Cor. 9:21; Gal. 6:2). The saying itself can be duplicated in Jewish sources: “Not the expounding of the law is the chief thing but the doing of it” (m. Aboth 1:17) or “You ought not only to read the laws of Moses, but rather to practice what they command you” (Josephus, Antiquities 20.44). Jesus has a similar saying ...

171. Praise to God for a Living Hope

1 Peter 1:1-12

Understanding Series

Norman Hillyer

... the Roman province of that name), and Bithynia, probably indicates the route taken by the letter carrier. The messenger, who may have been Silas (5:12), would need only to call on a few Christian communities in each province, leaving a copy of the letter to be duplicated by local believers and shared with others nearby. 1:2 NIV adds the words who have been chosen to make it clear that the rest of the verse follows on from “God’s elect” (or “chosen”) in verse 1, and involves the function of each of ...

172. Laban Pursues Jacob

Genesis 31:22-55

Understanding Series

John E. Hartley

... Abraham’s offspring and his father’s house in Haran. No one else of Abraham’s seed would travel to that area to take a wife. The report of this covenant between Laban and Jacob is difficult to unravel because it is hard to sort out the duplicate details: two witnesses, two place names, two names for God, two meals, and two purposes, that is, a guarantee of Jacob’s protecting the status of Laban’s daughters in his house and a boundary marker. These elements in pairs may be understood either as the ...

173. The Sons of David

1 Chronicles 3:1-9

Understanding Series

Louis C. Jonker

... only once in 1 Sam. 5:16. Third, the name Nogah (also 1 Chron. 14:6) does not occur in 1 Sam. 5. A text-critical way to harmonize the two texts is to say that the first occurrence of Eliphelet and the following word, Nogah, were erroneously duplicated in the Chronicler’s list, resulting in nine sons instead of seven. That the version with nine sons is also preserved in 1 Chron. 14:5–7 is an indication that the writer made the changes in 3:6–8 deliberately. One explanation for this deliberate change ...

174. Gershonites

1 Chronicles 23:7-11

Understanding Series

Louis C. Jonker

... seen as an indication that these interrupting lists were not added at the same time and by the same hands. Second, some scholars argue that certain lists are original but others belong to a secondary level. These scholars do not regard 28:1 as a duplicate of 23:2 but rather see it as a repetitive resumption of the narrative after some lists that were inserted by the Chronicler himself. A third position adopted by some scholars is the originality of all or almost all the lists. The main argument here ...

175. Kohathites

1 Chronicles 23:12-20

Understanding Series

Louis C. Jonker

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