INTRODUCTION Elisha has been introduced earlier as Elijah?s successor (1 Kings 19), one of Yahweh?s instruments of judgment against the house of Omri. As Joshua succeeded Moses, and as the Spirit working with the apostles succeeded Jesus, so Elisha carries on the work of Elijah. THE TEXT ?And it came to pass, when the Lord was about to take up Elijah into heaven by a whirlwind, that Elijah went with Elisha to Gilgal . . . .?E(2 Kings 2:1-25). (more…) Read more
And it was in Yahweh’s causing-to-ascend ‘Eliyyahu in a windstorm to the heavens. And walked ‘Eliyyahu and ‘Eliysha’ from the Gilgal. And said ‘Eliyyahu to ‘Eliysha’, “Dwell here please, for Yahweh sends me unto Beyt-‘El.” And said ‘Eliysha’, “Life of Yahweh and life of your soul, if I forsake you.” And they went down [to] Beyt-‘El. (more…) Read more
Joseph Epstein writing on the MLA in a recent issue of The Weekly Standard: “At these meetings, in and out the room the women come and go, speaking of fellatio . . . .” Read more
Matthew 28:18-20: ?Go into all the world and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to observe all that I command you. And, behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.?E Today is Trinity Sunday, the beginning of the long season (or ?off-season?E of the church calendar that stretches between Pentecost to Advent. In many churches, this... Read more
This builds on the thoughts in an earlier post entitled “Ups and Downs.” Elijah has power to ascend and descend. When Ahaziah sends his troops to capture Elijah, he is high up, exalted like Yahweh on a mountain. But He does come down to deliver a message, but only on his own terms and on Yahweh’s terms. He has power to rise up, and he has power to come down. Because the Word and Angel of Yahweh are with him,... Read more
A week and a half ago, Newsweek published a story alleging that U.S. interrogators at Guantanamo Bay Naval Station, Cuba, desecrated the Koran by flushing pages down the toilet. The report touched off riots throughout the Middle East that killed 15 and left many injured. This past week, Newsweek retracted the story, promising to investigate the sources more thoroughly. (more…) Read more
Some of this repeats notes from last week, but then moves beyond. WHAT ABOUT ISRAEL? The ringing affirmations of chapter 8, that those who are in Christ cannot be lost to Christ leads directly into Paul?s discussion of Israel in chapter 9. He is not beginning a new topic. He has said that nothing can separate us from Christ, that God will never forsake His elect. But similar promises were also given to Israel. In fact, as Schreiner points out,... Read more
I am indebted to Peter Roise for the following NT Wrightian comments. In the OT, the name “Baal-zebub” occurs only in 2 Kings 1. But the name reappears as a title for Satan in the gospels, when the leaders of Israel accuse Jesus of casting out demons by Beelzebul, the Prince of the Demons (Matt 10:25; 12:22ff; Mark 3:23ff; Luke 11:17ff). The situation in the gospels is linked to the story in 2 Kings 1 in at least one important... Read more
What’s with all the up-down talk in 2 Kings 1? The Angel of Yahweh sends Elijah to “ascend to call” the messengers/angels of Ahaziah (v. 3), and Elijah’s message is that Ahaziah will never “come down” from the bed where he “ascended” (v. 3). That oracle, including the “come down” and “go up” is repeated in verses 6 and 16, and in between you have two captains with their fifty soldiers “go up” to the hill of Elijah (vv. 9)... Read more
I’ve posted a number of times on Cusa in the past, and the following builds on notes and outline that I posted in Febrary 2004. NICHOLAS OF CUSA This is a continuation of the earlier essay on Renaissance and modernity. To keep my assessment of the Renaissance under control, and to have something other than glittering generalities to offer, I have restricted myself to the examination of one Renaissance thinker, one whose influence on the Renaissance as such is very... Read more
Leithart
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In