Isaiah and the Age of Empires

Critical treatments of Isaiah often leave me a bit frustrated but this one seemed to be fairly balanced.

Zacchaeus in Luke 19

Ian Paul has a very good discussion here of Zacchaeus in Luke 19.

Gordon Fee (1934–2022)

It is being reported on a number of online platforms (here for one) that Gordon Fee is now with the Lord. I did not know him personally but have been impacted by his scholarship in the New Testament. His work was thoughtful, thorough, and helpful.

Jim Denison on Preaching

This essay meanders a bit but makes several cogent observations concerning preaching.

The Latest Issue of the Review of Biblical Literature

The latest issue of Review of Biblical Literature is out. Reviews can be accessed by clicking the links below but unfortunately you must be a SBL member to read them.

Pamela Barmash and Mark W. Hamilton, eds., In the Shadow of Empire: Israel and Judah in the Long Sixth Century BCE (SBL Press)
Michael B. Hundley

Aaron Butts, Kristen Heal, and Sebastian P. Brock, Clavis to the Metrical Homilies of Narsai (Peeters)
Adam H. Becker

G. Anthony Keddie, Michael Flexenhar, and Steven J. Friesen, eds., The Struggle over Class: Socioeconomic Analysis of Ancient Christian Texts (SBL Press)
David B. Hollander

Jerome H. Neyrey, An Encomium for Jesus: Luke, Rhetoric, and the Story of Jesus (Sheffield Phoenix)
Toan Do

Karl-Wilhelm Niebuhr, Tora und Weisheit: Studien zur frühjüdischen Literatur (Mohr Siebeck)
Jozef Tiňo

Andrei A. Orlov, Yetzer Anthropologies in the Apocalypse of Abraham (Mohr Siebeck)
William Horst

Charlie Trimm, The Destruction of the Canaanites: God, Genocide, and Biblical Interpretation (Eerdmans)
Gili Kugler

Walter T. Wilson, Ancient Wisdom: An Introduction to Sayings Collections (Eerdmans)
Dennis R. Magary

Psalm 93

I am working on a commentary on the Psalms. I have decided to compile some helpful links that I discovered during my research. It includes a mix of exegetical and sermonic links. Here is what I have for Psalm 93 (in no particular order). Feel free to mention any that you find helpful in the comments section.

Analysis by C. J. Labuschagne: https://www.labuschagne.nl/ps093.pdf

Steven Lawson, Psalm 93:1-5 Sermon: https://immanuelbible.church/resource/sermons/message/absolutely-sovereign

William Barrick’s notes: https://drbarrick.org/files/studynotes/Psalms/Ps_093.pdf

Psalm 93 devotional: https://www.generations.org/devotionals/106

The Master's Seminary Journal 33:2

The latest volume of The Master's Seminary Journal (Fall 2022) is available here as a free PDF. Here is a list of the articles.

Abner Chou, “They Were Not Serving Themselves, but You”: Reclaiming the Prophets’ Messianic Intention”

Iosif J. Zhakevich, “Reverse of the Curse: An Allusion to Genesis 3:15 in Psalm 110:1”

Paul Twiss, “A Tale of Two Brothers: The Messiah in Genesis 49”

Todd Bolen, “The Messiah in Isaiah 7:14: The Virgin Birth”

Bryan Murphy, “Priest According to the Order of Melchizedek”

David Zadok, “The Messiah in the Minor Prophets”

Menachem I. Kalisher, “Isaiah 52: The Identity and Ministry of the Servant of the LORD”

HT: Antony Billington

Psalm 23 in Hebrew

BiblePlaces has just released a nice video here of Psalm 23 that includes the psalm sung in Hebrew.

Attentive Sermon Listening

J. J. Routley has some good suggestions here.

The Latest Issue of the Review of Biblical Literature

The latest issue of Review of Biblical Literature is out. Reviews can be accessed by clicking the links below but unfortunately you must be a SBL member to read them.

Georg Braulik, Tora und Fest: Aufsätze zum Deuteronomium und zur Liturgie (Katholisches Bibelwerk)
aavo N. Tucker

L. Juliana M. Claassens and Irmtraud Fischer, eds., Prophecy and Gender in the Hebrew Bible (SBL Press)
Gerrie Snyman

Dan W. Clanton Jr. and Terry R. Clark, eds., The Oxford Handbook of the Bible and American Popular Culture (Oxford University Press)
Brandon R. Grafius

David A. deSilva, Discovering Revelation: Content, Interpretation, Reception (Eerdmans)
Mark B. Stephens

John Goldingay, The Book of Jeremiah (Eerdmans)
Georg Fischer SJ

Jimmy Hoke, Feminism, Queerness, Affect, and Romans: Under God? (SBL Press)
Valérie Nicolet

Reuben Turbi Luka, Jesus Christ as Ancestor: A Theological Study of Major African Ancestor Christologies in Conversation with the Patristic Christologies of Tertullian and Athanasius (Langham Monographs)
Ronald Burris

Zsuzanna Végh, Feste der Ewigkeit: Untersuchungen zu den abydenischen Kulten während des Alten und Mittleren Reiches (Mohr Siebeck)
Andreas Henning Pries

Acts 5:12-42

I taught Acts 5:12-42 this morning. In my preparation, I found this great "Bible Blocks" video.

Journal of Biblical Literature 141:3

Volume 141:3 of the Journal of Biblical Literature is now out. Here is a list of the articles with links to abstracts.

Asking for Trouble: Two Reading Traditions of פללים (Exodus 21:22) in Antiquity
Amit Gvaryahu

The Allotment of Canaan in Joshua and Numbers
Dylan R. Johnson

Poor Circulation: Embodied Economics in Haggai, Malachi, and Zechariah 1–8
Laura Carlson Hasler

Additions of Conjunctive Vav (“and”) in 1QIsaa: Evidence for the Role of Language Processing Strategies
Einav Fleck

Babatha’s Final Days: New Light from Papyrus Starcky
Philip Esler

Enthroned and Coming to Reign: Jesus’s Eschatological Use of Psalm 110:1 in Mark 14:62
Murray J. Smith and Ian J. Vaillancourt

Holy Impairment: The Body as the Nexus of Apocalyptic Ekphrasis in Acts 2:1–13
Meghan R. Henning

Holy Land Sanctity for Every Greco-Roman City: Rethinking the Lukan Apostolic Decree (Acts 15:19–21)
W. Gil Shin

Paul’s Use of Συναπάγω in Romans 12:16
Rodney Kilgore

Learning About Missions from Jesus, Peter, and Paul

The New Testament scholar Eckhard Schnabel identifies ten principles here.

The Secret Excavation of Jerusalem

Although I have heard this story before it was still a fun read from the Smithsonian Magazine.

Psalm 42:1

Ken Berding has a good post here on Psalm 42:1, highlighting an aspect of the verse that is often missed.

The Etrog and Sukkot

I must admit that I haven't given much thought to the etrog associated with Sukkot (aka Feast of Tabernacles or Booths). But this article by Dafna Langgut was a fascinating read.

The Latest Issue of the Review of Biblical Literature

The latest issue of Review of Biblical Literature is out. Reviews can be accessed by clicking the links below but unfortunately you must be a SBL member to read them.

Jonathan Ben-Dov and Michal Bar-Asher Siegal, eds., Social History of the Jews in Antiquity: Studies in Dialogue with Albert Baumgarten (Mohr Siebeck)
Benjamin D. Gordon

Allegra Iafrate, The Long Life of Magical Objects: A Study in the Solomonic Tradition (Pennsylvania State University Press)
Damien Labadie

Chris Keith, The Gospel as Manuscript: An Early History of the Jesus Tradition as Material Artifact (Oxford University Press)
Julia Lindenlaub

Antti Laato, Message and Composition of the Book of Isaiah: An Interpretation in the Light of Jewish Reception History (De Gruyter)
Marvin A. Sweeney

Michael Lakey, The Ritual World of Paul the Apostle: Metaphysics, Community and Symbol in 1 Corinthians 10–11 (T&T Clark)
Matthew T. Sharp

Joseph Isaac Lifshitz, Naomi Feuchtwanger-Sarig, Simha Goldin, Jean Baumgarten, and Hasia Diner, eds., Minhagim: Custom and Practice in Jewish Life (de Gruyter)
Joshua Schwartz

Ryan S. Schellenberg, Abject Joy: Paul, Prison, and the Art of Making Do (Oxford University Press)
Jeremy L. Williams

Colin M. Whiting, Documents from the Luciferians: In Defense of the Nicene Creed (SBL Press)
Mark DelCogliano

Ancient Coins and the Book of Revelation

I have more than a passing interest in ancient coinage and also the biblical text. I have been thinking about how Roman coinage might shed light on one particular image in Revelation. So I was happy to see this video from the sixth annual fall lecture hosted by the Clayton Museum of Ancient History at York University on Sept 27, 2022. Although the issue I am thinking of was not raised in this lecture, I found it interesting nonetheless.