Jul 24, 2010

Rebuilding the Temple . . . Sort of


I don't know much about this, but according to this
story, "Brazil will build a replica of Jerusalem's destroyed Temple of Solomon in eastern Sao Paulo, in a four-year, 113-million dollar construction project."

Martin Luther on Bible Study


Here is an oft quoted remark attributed to Martin Luther.


"I study my Bible like I gather apples. First, I shake the whole tree that the ripest may fall. Then I shake each limb, and when I have shaken each limb, I shake each branch and every twig. Then I look under every leaf. I search the Bible as a whole like shaking the whole tree. Then I shake every limb–study book after book. Then I shake every branch, giving attention to the chapters. Then I shake every twig, or a careful study of the paragraphs and sentences and words and their meanings."

Jul 23, 2010

Finding the Big Idea in the Pentateuch

Here is another quote from John Sailhamer’s The Meaning of the Pentateuch. Here he discusses how to identify the big idea of the Pentateuch (p. 151).

“How then, do we find the big idea of a large text such as the Pentateuch? How do we formulate a big idea to help us make sense of the Pentateuch? The answer is surprisingly simple. We find the big idea by reading and rereading the text in its parts and as a whole. As we read the text, we begin to formulate a sense of what the text is about (subject matter), and where the author is going with it (compositional strategy). Most of the time, we do this unconsciously, but as we reread the text, we should also do this consciously and intentionally. We should look for where the author is taking us in the Pentateuch. What kind of topics and events are important to him? What is he writing about? What is he saying? Those questions help us get a sense of what the Pentateuch is about.”

Jul 22, 2010

Five Reasons to Preach the Old Testament


1. Preaching from the Old Testament is of value because it is as much a part of Scripture as the New Testament.

2. Preaching from the Old Testament is of value today because it is the foundation upon which New Testament doctrine and faith is built.

3. Preaching the Old Testament is of value because it constitutes the backdrop for the ministry of our blessed Savior.

4. Preaching from the Old Testament is of value because many attributes and activities of God are clearly demonstrated.

5. Preaching from the Old Testament is of value, because it provides rich illustrative material.

W. A. Criswell, "Preaching from the Old Testament," in Tradition and Testament: Essays in Honor of Charles Lee Feinberg, ed. John S. Feinberg and Paul D. Feinberg (Chicago: Moody, 1981), 297-301.

Jul 21, 2010

Latest Issue of Review of Biblical Literature


The latest issue of Review of Biblical Literature is out. Reviews that may be of interest from a Bible Exposition perspective include:

Paul Barnett
Finding the Historical Christ: After Jesus, Volume 3
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7107
Reviewed by Matthew Recla

David W. Chapman
Ancient Jewish and Christian Perceptions of Crucifixion
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7367
Reviewed by John T. Carroll

Gordon D. Fee
The First and Second Letters to the Thessalonians
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7268
Reviewed by James W. Aageson

Edna Johnson
A Semantic and Structural Analysis of Ephesians
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7164
Reviewed by Timothy Gombis

Brigitte Kahl
Galatians Re-imagined: Reading with the Eyes of the Vanquished
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7438
Reviewed by Vernon K. Robbins

Gwynn Kessler
Conceiving Israel: The Fetus in Rabbinic Narratives
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7441
Reviewed by Catherine Hezser

Markus McDowell
Prayers of Jewish Women: Studies of Patterns of Prayer in the Second Temple Period
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=5395
Reviewed by Rodney A. Werline

Ludwig Morenz and Stefan Schorch, eds.
Was ist ein Text? Alttestamentliche, ägyptologische und altorientalistische Perspektiven
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6824
Reviewed by Wido van Peursen

Antonio Negri
The Labor of Job: The Biblical Text as a Parable of Human Labor
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7325
Reviewed by Norman C. Habel

Ron E. Tappy and P. Kyle McCarter Jr., eds.
Literate Culture and Tenth-Century Canaan: The Tel Zayit Abecedary in Context
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7116
Reviewed by Ian Young

Evidence for the Local Production of the Dead Sea Scrolls


See this interesting article on recent tests which suggest that at least some of the Dead Sea Scrolls were produced in an area around the Dead Sea.

Hurtado on Remembrance & Revelation in John


Larry Hurtado has posted another one of his published essays. This one id entitled, "Remembering and Revelation: The Historic and Glorified Jesus in the Gospel of John." You can access it here.

Jul 20, 2010

The Clothing of Adam and Eve


Louis McBride has an interesting post on whether the clothing of Adam and Eve in Genesis 3:21 involved an animal sacrifice. Read the post here.

On Sale: A Reader's Hebrew and Greek Bible


Zondervan is offering A Reader's Hebrew and Greek Bible for 50% off until 7/26. To order, go here and use source code 750178.

I offered my thoughts on this Bible here.

Jul 19, 2010

Resources for Preaching the Pentateuch


Here is a list of recommended resources from Peter Vogt for preaching the Pentateuch. It looks like a pretty solid list to me.


Gibson, Scott M., ed. Preaching the Old Testament. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2006.

Kaiser, Walter C., Jr. Preaching and Teaching from the Old Testament: A Guide for the Church. Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 2003.

Larsen, David L. Telling the Old, Old Story: The Art of Narrative Preaching. Grand Rapids: Kregel, 1995.

Robinson, Haddon W. Biblical Preaching: The Development and Delivery of Expository Messages. 2nd ed. Grand Rapids:
Baker Book House, 2001.

Peter T. Vogt, Interpreting the Pentateuch (Grand Rapids: Kregel, 2009), 178.

Hurtado on Defining Christian Origins


Larry Hurtado takes a stab at defining and delineating the discipline of Christian origins
here.

Jul 18, 2010

Notes and PowerPoint on the Gospel of Mark


James Allman has posted some notes and PowerPoint on the Gospel of Mark here. Good stuff. Check it out.

Paul and the Cross of Christ


"For Paul the cross of Christ became the focal point of everything. He defines the gospel message as 'the word of the cross' (1 Cor. 1.18). In Galatians he inte
rrupts the usual words of greeting with 'from Christ who sacrificed himself for our sins' (Gal. 1.4). In 1.9 he exclaims : 'if we or an angel from heaven should proclaim to you a gospel contrary to what we proclaimed to you, let that one be accursed!' He tells the church in Corinth: 'In Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them' (2 Cor. 5.19). Paul declares, 'May I never boast of anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ' (Gal. 6.14). Odysseus may glory in his cleverness, but Paul glories only in the cross of Christ."

Anthony C. Thiselton, The Living Paul: An Introduction to the Apostles Life and Thought (Downers Grove: InterVarsity, 2009), 82.