Sermon and Worship Resources

Synonyms: Levi, disciple, evangelist, tax collector, the 12, the twelve, apostle, sermon on the mount, jewish audience, beatitudes, lord's prayer, great commission, parables, olivet discourse, mount of olives, olivet, synoptic

Showing 1901 to 1925 of 4942 results

1901. 144,000 Sealed

Revelation 7:1-8

Understanding Series

Robert W. Wall

In concluding the horrific judgment brought about by the opening of the sixth seal, John interposes an eschatological interlude that responds to the two questions evoked by the experience of human suffering. Whether they concern the suffering of Christian martyrs, lamented at the opening of the scroll’s fifth seal, or of their persecutors, initiated by the sixth, the cries for vindication and of lamentation envision a common recognition that the social order and its ruling elite are opposed to the well- ...

1902. The Seventh Trumpet

Revelation 11:15-19

Understanding Series

Robert W. Wall

The seventh trumpet blows a note of rejoicing in heaven. The heavenly chorus resumes its praise of God’s reign and God’s Christ, continuing the doxology sung at the Lamb’s coronation (cf. Rev. 5:13). Together with the great hymns of chapter 5, John brackets his vision of divine wrath and global devastation (6:1–11:14) with dissonant images of praise (5:13; 11:15–18) for rhetorical effect—to make it even more clear that God’s judgment of a sinful world is grounded in the triumph of the Lamb. The twenty-four ...

1903. Rules for Priests

Leviticus 21:1--22:16

Understanding Series

W. H. Bellinger, Jr.

Priests and Offerings: The Holiness Code now moves to cultic issues. Chapter 21 treats issues related to priests, who carry a special holiness, and chapter 22 provides instruction on offerings that are to be handled with great care. These chapters apply the holiness perspective to the priesthood as an institution and to various offerings. Chapter 21 addresses priests and their families and then delineates the physical requirements for entering the priesthood. 21:1–9 The chapter begins with the notion that ...

1904. God’s Promise to David

2 Samuel 7:1-17

Understanding Series

Mary J. Evans

God’s Covenant with David: This chapter forms the climax of the whole Davidic tradition and brings together two themes, the foundation of the Davidic dynasty and the building of the temple. These themes are not fully integrated (vv. 1–7 and vv. 8–29 can each stand alone), and scholars have debated the structure and origins of the material. However, the fact that we have the origin of two institutions that dominated Israel’s history shows how vital this chapter is. The connection between the two themes is ...

1905. David Defeats the Ammonites

2 Samuel 10:1-19

Understanding Series

Mary J. Evans

The Ammonites Are Defeated: The relationship between Israel and Ammon around this time is unclear. In 8:12 the Ammonites are one of the peoples subdued by David, but the relationship between David and the Ammonite king Nahash had been good. Chapter 8, which gives a brief summary of all the campaigns and battles that helped David to consolidate and extend his power, perhaps was written after the events described. This kind of detailed account of a particular military campaign is somewhat unusual and may be ...

1906. David and Bathsheba

2 Samuel 11:1-27

Understanding Series

Mary J. Evans

David and Bathsheba: The mopping-up operation to complete the siege of the Syrian capital Rabbah is described in 11:1, but the completion is not recorded until 12:26–31. In between is the story of David’s involvement in adultery, betrayal, and murder. 11:1 The writers make it clear that David’s presence in Jerusalem at this time was unusual. The fighting season has begun, but at the time when kings go off to war, David sent Joab. That is, he did not go himself, and the verse stresses that while the army ...

1907. David's Mighty Men

2 Samuel 23:8-39

Understanding Series

Mary J. Evans

The Honors List: Given the extent to which David’s fortunes were influenced by his supportive soldiers, it was appropriate to include a military honors list. It is possible that the information about these names came from the same kind of military records as did 21:15–22. The list appears to come largely from the first part of David’s reign; a more extensive list in 1 Chronicles 11 and 12 probably covers a wider time period. “The Thirty” seems to have been the name of the finest troop of David’s soldiers, ...

1908. Job Speaks

Job 3:1-26

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

Job’s Protest out of Pain: Opening Curse: At last, Job himself breaks the protracted silence with an explosive speech. This passionate monologue, which stretches from 3:3–26, is divided into two sections: an opening curse (3:3–10); and a questioning lament (3:11–26). 3:1–2 An introduction that summarizes the coming monologue prefaces Job’s speech: After this, Job opened his mouth and cursed the day of his birth. These words connect the prose prologue of the first two chapters (“after this”), with the ...

1909. Job's Second Reply to Eliphaz

Job 16:1-17:16

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

Miserable Comforters Job returns to the discussion even more hopeless than before. Whereas he had expressed a determination to carry his case before God when he last responded to Zophar (chs. 12–14), he now seems almost resigned to defeat and rejection by human beings and by God. By the end of this response to Eliphaz, Job declares his hopelessness and prepares to go down to Sheol unrequited (17:16). 16:1–3 As often before, Job’s response begins with a critique of his friends’ lack of compassion and ...

1910. Job's Second Reply to Bildad

Job 19:1-29

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

God Has Wronged Me Job’s response to Bildad’s second speech alternates between recrimination against his friends’ lack of compassion and lament over the divine attack he is experiencing. The friends attack and torment Job because they are convinced he is at fault (19:4, 28). Job continues to claim his innocence and to call the friends to compassion and mutual support (19:21–22). He concludes with a warning that if the friends continue to align themselves with God’s unwarranted attack on Job, they might ...

1911. Zophar's Second Speech to Job

Job 20:1-29

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

Rejection of Discipline 20:1–3 Zophar, in his second (and final!) speech, makes little attempt to respond to the words Job has just spoken. After an initial angry reaction to what he perceives as Job’s attempts to “discipline” (NIV rebuke, at the beginning of v. 3) an already established group of sages, he launches into a traditional wisdom discourse on the fate of the wicked. His obvious assumption is that Job is firmly entrenched in this category and has little, if any, chance of avoiding a similar fate ...

1912. Job's Second Reply to Zophar

Job 21:1-34

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

The Inexplicable Prosperity of the Wicked In chapter 21, Job responds to Zophar’s accusations by thoroughly deconstructing the foundation on which they rest. Zophar has claimed that the wicked perish both in an ultimate sense and in their relentless quest for that which does not satisfy—the gnawing greed that consumes the wicked from the inside out. Job assesses Zophar’s claims as so much “nonsense” and “falsehood” (v. 34) when held up to the mirror of real life as Job both knows and describes it. Far from ...

1913. Eliphaz's Third Speech to Job

Job 22:1-30

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

No Gain for God The “third dialogue cycle” begins again with Eliphaz and his response to Job. He begins with a series of rhetorical questions that recall the tactics of his earlier two speeches (4:1–5:27; 15:1–35). In those utterances Eliphaz sought to undermine Job’s claims of innocence by arguing that no human can be declared innocent before God (4:7–9, 17–19; 15:14–16). Since even the angels—who stand above humans in Eliphaz’s understanding of creation order—are charged “with error” by God (4:18–19; 15: ...

1914. Delivering the Helpless from Social Oppression: Part I

Psalm 9:1-20

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

Originally Psalms 9 and 10 were one psalm. Psalm 10 has no superscription, which is unusual in Book I of the Psalter. Together these psalms form an acrostic, that is, an alphabetical psalm, and Psalm 10 picks up right where Psalm 9 leaves off (Ps. 9 closes with Hb. k, and Ps. 10 opens with Hb. l, the Hebrew letters kāp and lāmed respectively). As noted below, the psalms contain numerous linguistic and thematic links. The LXX, in fact, preserves them as one psalm. But what a contrast these psalms form! ...

1915. Jesus Begins to Preach

Matthew 4:12-17

Understanding Series

Robert H. Mounce

4:12–16 The imprisonment of John the Baptist marks the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry in Galilee. In chapter 11 Matthew tells of John’s concern while in prison regarding the messiahship of Jesus (vv. 1–6), and in chapter 14 he records John’s death at the request of Herodias (vv. 1–12). Jesus’ return to Galilee was in no way a flight from danger, as some have suggested because of the way the Greek verb anachōreō (“to go away”) is used in passages such as Matthew 2:14, 22; 12:15. Galilee, as well as ...

1916. A Wisdom Prayer for Those Who Fear the Lord

Psalm 25:1-22

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

Psalm 25 is like the prayer psalms of the individual, but several features make it unusual. It is an acrostic, that is, its verses begin with the successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet. Many of them concern instruction and guidance in God’s ways (vv. 4–5, 8–10, 12). Both of these features are prominent in psalms reflecting wisdom influence (Pss. 34; 37; 112; 119). “Fearing” the Lord (vv. 25:12, 14) is also a recurring motif in wisdom psalms (19:9; 34:7, 9, 11; 112:1; Ps. 119, five times; cf. 145:19), ...

1917. Living Praise Versus Deathly Silence

Psalm 30:1-12

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

Psalm 30 is among the thanksgiving psalms, which form the flip side to the prayer psalms of the individual. The prayer psalms generally close with a vow of praise that once Yahweh has delivered the supplicant, the supplicant will sing a thanksgiving psalm to Yahweh. The issue of Psalm 30 in particular is death and silence versus life and praise. It begins with a proclamation of praise and an introductory summary of Yahweh’s deliverance (v. 1) and of the worshiper’s calling and Yahweh’s responding (vv. 2–3 ...

1918. Taste and See that the Lord Hears and Delivers

Psalm 34:1-22

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

Psalm 34 is an acrostic (each verse begins with a successive letter of the Hb. alphabet), consisting of an individual’s thanksgiving (vv. 1–7), exhortation (imperatives dominate vv. 8–14), and praise or instruction (vv. 15–22 are statements). It reflects motifs from the wisdom tradition (esp. in vv. 11–14). The opening thanksgiving and closing praises focus on deliverance from distress, and the exhortations in the middle focus on blessing, especially for provision and long life. A public setting is ...

1919. Our Mighty Fortress

Psalm 46:1-11

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

God as our fortress (vv. 7, 11)—as a “Mighty Fortress” (thanks to Martin Luther)—has been an image comforting believers living in turmoil through the centuries. Psalm 46 is one of the Songs of Zion (also Pss. 48, 76, 84, 87, 132). Psalms 46, 48, and 76 follow the same pattern: (a) a confession that “God is . . . in Zion,” (b) a report that God has stilled Zion’s attackers, and (c) imperatives to acknowledge God as sovereign protector—not the usual hymnic imperatives to join in verbal praise (46:8, 10; 48: ...

1920. Rest in God

Psalm 62:1-12

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

We admire the confidence and security reflected in this psalm, but we should not imagine they come easily or naturally. In fact, this psalm of trust admits that these qualities do not come without effort. This is not a personal testimony of one boasting in his confidence but a liturgy that leads worshipers to lay claim to the salvation that is in God. The exhortations of verses 8 and 10 are plural and imply a congregation or assembly (“O people”) is present. Verse 8 seeks to apply to the group (“God is our ...

1921. The Pilgrim’s Thirst for God in a Dry and Weary Land

Psalm 63:1-11

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

Psalm 63 promotes a special intimacy with God. It consists primarily of confessions of trust and vows of praise (vv. 3–4, 11) and so is most akin to the prayer psalms, but it has no formal petition (though conceivably some of the Hb. imperfects could be rendered as wishes). Its primary function apparently is confessing to God the worshiper’s intentions of “seeking” and “staying close to” God, and affirming that God will in turn sustain and protect him. The psalm confesses what has drawn the worshiper to ...

1922. The Wicked with Tongues like Arrows and the Divine Archer

Psalm 64:1-10

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

64:1–10 Several features of this prayer psalm point towards its use as a liturgy concerned with the general issue of social injustices. First, while the psalm begins with the voice of an individual (I, me, and my in vv. 1–2), its attention is thereafter devoted to two groups, the wicked (vv. 2–8, called the enemy in v. 1, not “my enemy”) and the righteous (vv. 4, 9–10). This shift is understandable if the opening “I” is a representative speaker. Second, the psalm’s structure does not make clear sense if we ...

1923. God’s Reputation and the Destruction of Jerusalem

Psalm 79:1-13

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

No event in ancient Israel’s history was more devastating than the fall of Jerusalem in 587 B.C. and the subsequent exile. It marked not just a national crisis but a religious one as well. As we read in Psalm 74, the people had thereby lost three principal symbols from their God: the land, the king, and the temple. When we readers of the Bible consider the exile, we usually do so from the clear perspective of the Former (e.g., 1–2 Kgs.) and Latter Prophets (e.g., Isa.; Jer.). We may wonder how there could ...

1924. Human Frailty and Sin, Divine Eternality and Anger, and a Prayer for Mercy

Psalm 90:1-17

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

Human Frailty and Sin, Divine Eternality and Anger, and a Prayer for Mercy Psalm 90 is a corporate prayer psalm bemoaning the brevity and travail of life. Although verses 2–6 speak of life’s transience as a general condition of humankind, verses 13–17 intimate that a more particular dilemma has occasioned these reflections. The petitions, “Relent, O LORD! How long will it be?” (v. 13a) and “Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us” (v. 15), imply the people’s current condition is considered ...

1925. The God of the Thunderstorm and the Proclamation of His Righteousness

Psalm 97:1-12

Understanding Series

Craig C. Broyles

This psalm of Yahweh’s kingship picks up where Psalm 96 leaves off: “let the earth be glad” (cf. 96:11). After this opening invitation, we hear of a thunderstorm demonstrating Yahweh’s supremacy and righteousness (vv. 2–6). We hear of the responses of idol worshipers and of Zion, along with a summary statement of Yahweh’s supremacy (vv. 7–9). The closing section spells out the implications of the above: Yahweh’s people must shun evil and then they will be granted protection, light, and joy (vv. 10–12). 97: ...

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