... hundred denarii (Matt. 18:23–30). Jews may be Exhibit A of human righteousness, yet even they cannot withstand the straightedge of the law. 2:25–29 Paul now moderates his argument by shifting to a more reasoned and didactic approach. He resumes the general thought of 2:12–15 by taking up the trump card of Jewish confidence—circumcision. Circumcision has value if you observe the law, but if you break the law, you have become as though you had not been circumcised (v. 25). Paul allows no separation of ...
... Paul said earlier of those who sought glory and did good that “glory, honor, and peace” would await them (2:10). It might be supposed that the human predicament is actually a failure to “come of age” or attain its destiny. This is quite an alien thought for Paul. Falling short of the glory of God is surely a reference to Adam’s sin in Genesis 3. Humanity lacks glory not because it has failed in its potential, but because it has lost it through disobedience. The lacking of glory draws our attention ...
... , He put a definite end to the law as a way of salvation,” said Bishop Nygren (Romans, p. 379). But if our understanding of chapter 4 was correct, Paul argued that from Abraham onward righteousness had always been by faith, even if Judaism mistakenly thought otherwise (e.g., 10:5–6). In reaction to this position, and in a desire to avoid anti-Semitic overtones, recent scholarship usually favors the first view that Christ is the goal and fulfillment of the law, i.e., the law still stands, but “apart ...
... his “workmanship” (Eph. 2:10). Transformation by God begins by the renewing of your mind. Among much of Christianity there is, if not a skepticism about the intellect, an uncertainty about it. A greater premium is placed on right actions than on right thought, on proper behavior than on the reasons and motives for it. The renewed mind must be understood against the “depraved mind” of 1:28. A depraved mind, of course, does not regard itself as depraved any more than a hypochondriac regards his or ...
... of and submission to governments (13:1–7). Some commentators, noting the abrupt transition at 13:1 and the switch from the second to third person in 13:1–7, regard this section as a departure from Paul’s teaching on agapē and an independent unit of thought. But, in fact, the instruction here is very much a part of the design since chapter 12. In agreement with 12:2 Paul appeals for a considered response “to approve what God’s will is” with respect to rulers. “Those who do what is right” (v ...
... knows and uses a synonymous phrase, “the kingdom of God” (basileia tou theou) in other settings: Rom. 14:17; 1 Cor. 4:20; Col. 4:11; 2 Thess. 1:5. In both cases Paul is using a traditional phrase from apocalyptic-eschatological Jewish thought, and he seems to indicate by these phrases the time, place, and experience of God’s supreme, exclusive rule. Certain elements of Paul’s list of wicked persons and behaviors have caught the attention of much of the church in late twentieth-century discussions ...
... confines of the pagan temple. The section is challenging to translators and interpreters because Paul writes in a vigorous style that takes abrupt rhetorical turns that can be and often are lost in the reading of the text. Identifying Paul’s line of thought is crucial to comprehending this otherwise confusing passage. Paul gives a helpful hint when he opens verse 23 with a near repetition of the slogan from the Corinthians that he quoted in 6:12. This quotation signals the dialogic nature and pattern of ...
... such divisions as an end in themselves. Nevertheless, Paul may mean to say that given the problems in Corinth, God must be at work to differentiate those who are faithful from those who are behaving inappropriately. The reader has seen repeatedly that the apostle thought and taught from an apocalyptic-eschatological point of view. If he writes in that vein at this point, he understands God’s power to be at work in the separation of the Corinthians into groups to show which of you have God’s approval ...
... of God’s genuine priority in life and in the experience of salvation. As Paul made clear in chapter 1, what matters is not what humans know but what God has done, is doing, and will do. 13:13 This concluding verse heightens the previous lines of thought and argument. Paul creates a slight contrast between what he says in these statements and what went before, for now the readers hear of the three highest gifts—faith, hope and love. Faith was mentioned in 13:2, but it is not clear that the same sense ...
... even repeats this admonition in 14:39, “Be eager to prophesy.” These twin declarations in 14:1 and 14:39 form a literary inclusio, which emphasizes the material it surrounds. From this insight one gains a solid footing for attempting to follow Paul’s thought as he winds his way through the rest of this discussion. 14:2 Verses 2–5 develop the thesis that was stated in verse 1. Having declared his own strong preference for prophecy over tongues, Paul offers a reflection on these two gifts that informs ...
... those who came seeking judgment, suggesting to each one that the case was obviously valid and proper. Yet it might not reach court, and if it did it was unlikely to get the kind of fair treatment that it would if Absalom had been in control. This introduced the thought that perhaps it was time for David to hand over power to one who was more able to handle it. Third, Absalom, having set himself apart from the people as a great prince, proceeded to treat all who came to pay their respects to him as if they ...
... and 2 have “hard service,” Job exceeds them all. They wait for the evening shade or the paycheck at the end of the work day, while Job has endured months of futility with no conclusion in sight. His nights of misery drag restlessly on, while thoughts that the whole experience must be repeated again in the morning plague him. Along with his pain and hopelessness, Job must also endure a failing body clothed with worms and scabs, covered with broken and festering skin. The Fragility of Life 7:6–7 Job’s ...
... the speaker has done what is evil in your sight, so that you are . . . justified when you judge. While verses 3–6 are the speaker’s confession of sin, they are also a “doxology of judgment” giving praise to the just God who reveals his thoughts to humans. In Joshua 7:19–21 after Achan is commanded “give glory to the LORD” and “tell . . . what you have done,” he confesses, “I have sinned against the LORD”—even though his action resulted in Israel’s defeat and the death of thirty-six ...
... Sira, who taught that zeal for the study of the law brought him rest. By taking up the yoke of wisdom one receives instruction: rest is found with a minimum of labor (Sir. 51:27–29). Although the language is similar, there is no real agreement in thought. The yoke that Jesus offers is a way of life quite distinct from Ben Sira’s suggestion. Gundry finds in the structure of these verses an attention to literary detail that leads him to assign the passage to Matthew rather than the spoken word of Jesus ...
... that the Israelites were warned not to do (Deut. 4:19). In short, Antiochus IV, in attacking the temple, was actually warring against the host of heaven, who were understood as both heavenly beings and stars. At his death he is described as a man who “had thought that he could touch the stars of heaven” (2 Macc. 9:10 NRSV). What is truly amazing about Daniel 8 is that Antiochus IV is somewhat victorious in his attack on heaven. He actually throws some of the starry host down to the earth and tramples on ...
... , we find a penitential prayer that makes no reference at all to Jeremiah or to the seventy years. On the other side, one might counter that this charge is unwarranted, because Daniel did not imagine that he needed a new interpretation. He already thought he understood the meaning of the seventy years (9:2). Instead of looking for a new revelation, he was acting on his belief that repentance and confession would bring about the deliverance of his people. This was the common understanding of the exiles ...
... the NT, for example, 1 Peter 1:18; Hebrews 9:12; Titus 2:14. In still other places the language varies, but the thought remains that Jesus’ death was a redemptive event, indeed, the redemptive event that is the basis for the salvation offered in the Gospel ( ... parallels in Matt. 20:26–27 and Luke 22:24–27, cf. also Matt. 23:11–12; Luke 14:11; 18:14, for similar thoughts. The term servant here (diakonos in Greek) is the same word used elsewhere in the NT to refer to various types of church ministries ...
... the poor, the sick, the needy, and the sinner have suggested all along that the kingdom of God is meant for these people as well as for those of more obvious and more impressive religious qualifications, in Luke 14:7–24 the messianic invitation to those thought unqualified is made explicit. There can be no mistaking Jesus’ message now. In the concluding words of the Central Section: Jesus has come to seek and to save the lost (see 19:10). Additional Notes 14:16–24 Luke’s Parable of the Great Banquet ...
... those who came seeking judgment, suggesting to each one that the case was obviously valid and proper. Yet it might not reach court, and if it did it was unlikely to get the kind of fair treatment that it would if Absalom had been in control. This introduced the thought that perhaps it was time for David to hand over power to one who was more able to handle it. Third, Absalom, having set himself apart from the people as a great prince, proceeded to treat all who came to pay their respects to him as if they ...
... Introduction; also on 13:11), then the readmission of the offender serves the purpose for writing the letter. 2:12–13 Having discussed the issue of the one who slandered him during his painful second visit (vv. 5–11), Paul abruptly resumes his train of thought from verse 4, where he mentioned that his tearful letter was written as a reaction, under great distress and anguish. In verses 12–13 Paul goes on to state that, while waiting to hear of the Corinthians’ response to his letter, he himself was ...
... faith of Jesus Christ in whom, through faith, believers participate. Continuing to answer the challenge “why then the law?” Paul expands on what he has said in verse 22. Being “prisoner(s) of sin,” human beings were held prisoners by the law. Paul repeats the thought of verse 19, that God brought in the law because of transgressions. The divinely assigned role for the law was that of confining sin for a period of time until faith should come. 3:24 Through his use of the word so Paul indicates that ...
... in some translations phrased as a statement rather than a question. The Greek text does have a question, but the form of the question makes it clear that he is not really expressing doubt but making his charge in interrogative form. Become judges with evil thoughts can be translated “evilly motivated judges” like the “unjust judge” of Luke 18:6. Cf. the Jewish condemnation of such behavior: e.g., Prov. 18:5; Psalms of Solomon 2:18; b. Berakoth 6a. 2:5 God’s election of Israel is further discussed ...
James 5:1-6, James 4:13-17, James 5:7-12, James 5:13-20
Understanding Series
Peter H. Davids
... , for it robs God of his rightful honor as sovereign and exalts a mere human as if he or she were God. Any plan confidently made outside God’s will discerned through prayer and meditation is not just foolish—it is sin. 4:17 To round off his thought, James adds a concluding proverb, which some speculate might be a saying of Jesus because of its tone and topic: Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn’t do it, sins. On the surface it simply rebukes sins of omission: A person who knows ...
James 5:7-12, James 4:13-17, James 5:1-6, James 5:13-20
Understanding Series
Peter H. Davids
... , for it robs God of his rightful honor as sovereign and exalts a mere human as if he or she were God. Any plan confidently made outside God’s will discerned through prayer and meditation is not just foolish—it is sin. 4:17 To round off his thought, James adds a concluding proverb, which some speculate might be a saying of Jesus because of its tone and topic: Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn’t do it, sins. On the surface it simply rebukes sins of omission: A person who knows ...
James 5:13-20, James 4:13-17, James 5:1-6, James 5:7-12
Understanding Series
Peter H. Davids
... , for it robs God of his rightful honor as sovereign and exalts a mere human as if he or she were God. Any plan confidently made outside God’s will discerned through prayer and meditation is not just foolish—it is sin. 4:17 To round off his thought, James adds a concluding proverb, which some speculate might be a saying of Jesus because of its tone and topic: Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn’t do it, sins. On the surface it simply rebukes sins of omission: A person who knows ...