Isaiah charges that the people of Judah ascend mountains to sacrifice sacrifices (57:7; lizboach zavach ). That’s normal: Every ancient people ascended toward heaven for worship. The furniture that Judah sets up on the mountain is, however, unusual. They set up a bed , not an altar, on the high place. And there, on that bed, they offer sacrifice. This is true even in the temple, where Judah offers sacrifice at the “communion site” or altar, where Judah offers God’s... Read more
In one of His most intense exchanges with His enemies, Jesus says that they “do the deeds of your father” in seeking to kill Jesus. He means that the devil is their father (John 8:39, 44). They protest that they are children of Abraham and sons of God (vv. 39, 41). “We are not born of fornication,” they insist (v. 41). Jesus here reapplies the condemnation of Isaiah against the people of Judah: Jews who pride themselves on being children... Read more
Isaiah condemns the people of Judah as “sons of a sorceress” (57:3). “Sorceress” translates ‘anan , which is derived from a verb “to cover” and sometimes refers to the gathering of clouds (Genesis 9:14). This particular form of the verb is typically used for the “dark arts” that take place under cover (Leviticus 19:25; Deuteronomy 18:10, 14; etc.). But in another form, the word simply means “cloud,” and refers to the cloud that led Israel though the wilderness (Exodus 13:21-22;... Read more
Isaiah 57 begins with a chiastically arranged fragment of wisdom literature. Verse 1 begins and ends with “righteous one” ( tzaddiyq ): A. The righteous man perishes B. there is not a man there of heart C. men of loyalty taken away B’. there is not consideration A’. for from the evil is taken away the righteous man. What is it that people are supposed to “consider” and “take to heart”? (more…) Read more
Ralph Smith continues his series of studies in Deuteronomy at the Trinity House site. Read more
Creation is threefold: Heaven, earth, sea. Alternatively, creation is sixfold, because each zone has things in it: Heaven and things, earth and things, sea and things (Revelation 10:6). A nice symmetry: The sixfold creation was formed over six days. At the origin and end of the sixfold creation, there has to be an eternal one who creates (Revelation 10:6). Otherwise, this sixfold creation is unfulfilled. It remains forever restless, because six is not seven, six is not Sabbatical. Absent the... Read more
For seven periods of time, Nebuchadnezzar lived like a beast, eating grass, his hair growing like wings (Daniel 4:28-33). Then he became human again. Like an Enlightenment philosopher, Daniel describes this as a restoration of “reason,” that most distinctive human trait. Twice, the king declares, “my reason (Ar. manda ‘) returned to me” (4:34, 36). With reason comes majesty and splendor, restoration to a place among counselors and nobles. A return to reason means a return to sovereignty, a restoration... Read more
NT Wright has sparked controversy for saying that Jesus announces the kingdom as the end of exile. It’s hardly a new thought. In his discussion of the “particular and general” in his Tyconius: The Book of Rules , Tyconius observes an alternating movement in the prophets. Prophets speak of the restoration from Babylon, or the fall of Babylon to the Medes, both historical events within Old Testament history. But then they will move to “general” prophecy about the fall of... Read more
Exodus says that Israel was in Egypt 430 years, Genesis says 400. Can we just round them off to make them coincide? Tyconius ( The Book of Rules ) isn’t satisfied with that. Perhaps, he suggests, “they were not in slaver for the whole time? We need to find out, therefore, when the slavery began: and this is easy to learn.” He points out that slavery began after Joseph’s death, and says: “if the people’s slavery began after Joseph’s death,... Read more
For a decade and a half in the middle of the twentieth century, two scientists, James McConnell and Georges Ungar attempted to determine whether memories can be transferred chemically from one organism to another. No one believes anymore that this can be done, but that’s not, according to Harry Collins and Trevor Pinch, because it was disproven. They write in The Golem: What You Should Know About Science that “In spite of the widespread demise of the credibility of the... Read more
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