Douglas Campbell (Deliverance of God, 749) convincingly suggests that the promise to Abraham is specifically embodied in his son Isaac: “Abraham is convinced that God is capable of giving him an heir. And if God does so, then the further promises are enabled – more offspring, land, and even the inheritance of the cosmos. Moreover, when God does so, Abraham’s longstanding trust in God is finally rewarded. Hence, it seems hard to avoid the conclusion that Isaac is God’s righteous... Read more
Douglas Campbell suggests (Deliverance of God, 739-40) that Genesis 17:5 creates a problem for Paul. There, God promises that Abraham will be the father of many nations, but ties that promise to circumcision. Campbell writes, the birth of Isaac, though whom this promise is realized, “creates a difficult for Paul because it occurred well after the events of Genesis 15:6, while the covenant of circumcision, established in chapter 17, now stands between them. So a powerful possible counterargument to Paul’s... Read more
Douglas Campbell (Deliverance of God, 640-656) solves a number of issues at a stroke with his complex, layered explanation of Paul’s use of hilasterion in Romans 3:25. The word is used most commonly in the LXX to refer to the “mercy seat” above the ark, especially in connection with the Day of Atonement. So to say that God presented Jesus publicly as a hilasterion is to say that His death is the definitive Yom Kippur. This is set, Campbell argues,... Read more
Polybius wrote, “when a man who has been helped when in danger by another does not show gratitude to his preserver, but even goes to the length of attempting to do him injury, it is clear that those who become aware of it will naturally be displeased and offended by such conduct, sharing the resentment of their injured neighbor and imagining themselves in the same situation. From all this there arises in everyone a notion of the meaning and theory of duty, which is... Read more
The beast of Revelation 13 initiates a double attack against the saints: first blasphemy, then he “makes war” on them (vv. 6-7). The blasphemies are against God, but they are directed also at the name of God, His tabernacle, and those who dwell in heaven (v. 6). The dragon has attempted to drown the woman with what comes from his mouth (12:15), and that failed because the land “opened its mouth” to help (12:16). The beast is more successful in... Read more
The worship of the beast in Revelation 13 takes the form of an acclamation of His uniqueness. “Who is like the beast?” they cry. This has several layers of significance. This acclamation echoes the acclamation of Israel in the song of Moses: “Who is like You among the gods, O Yahweh” (Exodus 15:11; cf. Psalm 35:10; 71:19; 89:8; 113:5). Moses turns the compliment to Israel: “Who is like you, a people saved by Yahweh” (Deuteronomy 33:29). Yahweh asks the same... Read more
Ernest Becker wrote: “Excreting is the curse that threatens madness because it shows man in his abject finitude, his physicalness, the likely unreality of his hopes and dreams. But even more immediately, it represents man’s utter bafflement at the sheer non-sense of creation: to fashion the sublime miracle of the human face, the mysterium tremendum of radiant feminine beauty, the veritable goddess that beautiful women are; to bring this out of nothing, out of the void, and make it shine... Read more
Ernest Becker wrote: “Excreting is the curse that threatens madness because it shows man in his abject finitude, his physicalness, the likely unreality of his hopes and dreams. But even more immediately, it represents man’s utter bafflement at the sheer non-sense of creation: to fashion the sublime miracle of the human face, the mysterium tremendum of radiant feminine beauty, the veritable goddess that beautiful women are; to bring this out of nothing, out of the void, and make it shine... Read more
Richard Beck points out in Unclean that disgust is “promiscuous”: It “has a degree of plasticity; it is molded to fit a given culture.” In this, disgust differs from other emotions: “The core triggers for happiness, fear, sadness, or anger appear to be fairly stable and consistent across cultures. But disgust stimuli can be highly variable from culture to culture” (18). The reason, he suggests, is that disgust has a “sensitive period.” Very young children don’t have much of a disgust response.... Read more
Richard Beck points out in Unclean that disgust is “promiscuous”: It “has a degree of plasticity; it is molded to fit a given culture.” In this, disgust differs from other emotions: “The core triggers for happiness, fear, sadness, or anger appear to be fairly stable and consistent across cultures. But disgust stimuli can be highly variable from culture to culture” (18). The reason, he suggests, is that disgust has a “sensitive period.” Very young children don’t have much of a disgust response.... Read more
Leithart
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In