We have some difficulty understanding the biblical picture of prayer because we live in a country that sharply separates politics and prayer. Ancient Israel did not do that. The dedication ceremony for the temple began with the transport of the ark of the covenant from its location in the ?city of David,?Ethe section of Jerusalem where David had put it in a tent, to the temple mount. Once the ark is set below the cherubim in the inner sanctuary of... Read more
As I’ve discussed in a previous post (and, more fully, in a forthcoming article in the Tyndale Bulletin ), Kings is organized by three parallel narratives: the story of the united kingdom (Solomon to Zedekiah and Jehoiachin); the northern kingdom (Jeroboam to the fall of Samaria and the destruction of Bethel); and the Omride dynasty (Omri to Jehu). Each of these ends with a Davidic revival: After Jehu comes Joash; after the fall of Samaria comes Hezekiah; after the fall... Read more
I read from Genesis 2:21-23 So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept; then he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh at that place. And the Lord God fashioned into a woman the rib which He had taken from the man, and brought her to the man. And the man said, ?This is now bone of my bones; and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman... Read more
Throughout the OT, there are repeated references to Yahweh’s “name” dwelling in the place of Yahweh’s choosing (Deut 12; 2 Sam 7; 1 Kings 6-8). Frequently (as in 1 Kings 8:16), there is a pun on the word “name” (SHEM) and the word “there” (SHAM). If we can extrapolate from this pun to theology proper: To speak of the name of God is to speak of a manifestation of God that has a “there,” that possesses the locative quality of... Read more
1 Kings 8:12-13 begins Solomon’s lengthy speech at the temple dedication. It is a poetic and formal utterance, and contins a number of intriguing features. First, it appears to be structured chiastically: Yahweh said A. to dwell (SHAKAN) B. in the gloom C. Building I have built B’. a house a lofty-dwelling for you A’. A place for your enthronement (for) ages. If this works, it connects dwelling and enthronement, two different sorts of “dwelling.” Also the connection of the... Read more
My son Christian noted a couple of cool things in the Bible this morning: 1) The law of the firstborn requires that the firstborn male of unclean animals like donkeys either be redeemed or killed: “every first opening of a donkey you shall redeem with a lamb, but if you do not redeem it, then you shall break its neck” (Ex 13:13). Jesus rides to Jerusalem on a donkey. If we assume that the donkey is a firstborn (which is... Read more
The NASB translates 1 Kings 8:9 as follows: “There was nothing in the ark except the two tablets of stone which Moses put there at Horeb, where the Lord made a covenant with the sons of Israel, when they came out of the land of Egypt.” The Hebrew, however, does not use the word BERIT (covenant). A literal translation of the middle section of the verse would be: “the two tablets of stone which Moses caused to rest there in... Read more
In his new book Violence, Hospitality, and the Cross , Hans Boersma offers this insightful and devastating criticism of Girard’s construct of a non-violent atonement: “One of the main reasons that [Girard’s] theory continues to increase in popularity is that he helps Christians avoid the embarrassment of having to acknowledge that God is involved in violence, even as he expresses his most hospitable self on the cross. This gain carries the cost, however, of the denial of a good creation.... Read more
House of Prayer, 1 Kings 8:1-66 INTRODUCTION As Chronicles makes clear, one of the big changes in worship at the time of Solomon was in the area of music. David organized a Levitical choir and orchestra, and these accompanied the sacrificial music with song. As 1 Kings 8 makes clear, another big change has to do with prayer. Many sacrifices are offered at the dedication of the temple (1 Kings 8:62-66), but the emphasis of the dedication is on prayer... Read more
1 Kings 7:48-50 In the sermon this morning, I noted that the two rows of water ?chariots?Eoutside the temple formed a gauntlet of water that the worshiper or priest passed through as he approached the temple. Every time anyone walked toward the temple, he symbolically relived the exodus, passing through the waters to the ?high place,?Ethe holy mountain, where God dwelt in glory. But there was another gauntlet in the temple. In addition to the 10 stands of water that... Read more
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