We’ve been discussing the puzzle of David’s assault on Goliath, whether David hit Goliath in the head or the leg, given that the Hebrew terms for forehead and grieve are identical.[1] We’ve looked at the nature of slings and sling stones (To which we will shortly return). Some...
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August 31, 2016 Andrew Sargent
101 Most Misunderstood Verses, Bible Backgrounds, Biblical Studies, Old Testament Studies, Text Criticism Issues
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In our last David and Goliath post, we considered the puzzle regarding David’s defeat of Goliath. The place where David struck Goliath in 1 Samuel 17:49 is the same Hebrew term for the greaves of bronze on Goliath’s legs in 1 Samuel 17:6. We posed the question: Did...
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August 29, 2016 Andrew Sargent
101 Most Misunderstood Verses, Bible Backgrounds, Biblical Studies, HAGALAH, Inductive Study Methods, Old Testament Studies
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Imagination has a good deal to do with how the story of David & Goliath is used in modern times, even among scholars and in commentaries. Given its status as one of the most repeated lessons in Sunday School, right up there with the prodigal son and the...
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August 26, 2016 Andrew Sargent
101 Most Misunderstood Verses, Bible Backgrounds, Biblical Language Issues, Biblical Theology, HAGALAH, Inductive Study Methods, Old Testament Studies
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If you consider yourself a leader in the church, whether pastor or lay leader, you should seriously consider taking the plunge to learn biblical languages. It is easier than you think, and more rewarding than you can imagine. Here are 12 quick reasons why you should: Learning Biblical...
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August 24, 2016 Andrew Sargent
Biblical Language Issues
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Can men and women be friends? Of course men and women can be friends… so long as one defines the term friend properly. The real question is, can men and women be friends the way two men or two women are friends? Can men and women have a...
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August 22, 2016 Andrew Sargent
Society
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Let’s face it, the Corinthian church was a mess. They remind me of the struggles of frontier ministers, like Peter Cartwright, who once beat the crud out of some hecklers, only to have them return for his evening service and dedicate their lives to Christ. The scene in...
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August 19, 2016 Andrew Sargent
101 Most Misunderstood Verses, Biblical Studies, New Testament Studies, NT's Use of the OT, Old Testament Studies
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The identity of “HE” in Isaiah 44:18[1] is in the end a mystery, but the question itself and the journey that results from the pursuit of an answer is invaluable. Isaiah says of Idol makers and Idol worshipers, “They do not know; they do not understand because he...
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August 17, 2016 Andrew Sargent
101 Most Misunderstood Verses, Biblical Language Issues, Old Testament Studies
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I don’t read Christian fiction. As an Old Testament scholar, I have an affinity with message in story and, like many of the investigators in my favorite novels, I enjoy the Sherlock Holmes-iness of reaching back through the ages to discern the intention of those masters who wrote...
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August 15, 2016 Andrew Sargent
Ethics, Society
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In Genesis 1:26, we find, “Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” Genesis 3:22 reads, “Then the LORD God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of us, knowing good and evil.” These are two of the most profound, yet debated,...
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August 12, 2016 Andrew Sargent
101 Most Misunderstood Verses, Biblical Language Issues, NT's Use of the OT, Old Testament Studies
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Living, as Americans, in a culture of divorce makes any dialogue on divorce and the Christian difficult. Indeed, any teaching set forward on divorce and remarriage will no longer be a marginal issue affecting only a small fraction of the Church, but will be tested in every conceivable...
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August 10, 2016 Andrew Sargent
Ethics, Society
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“You are attempting the impossible,” the Dean said to me in 1992. “You can’t get a PhD, be a husband, father, and employee. If you manage to get the degree, you will not be human when it’s over.” That was the best advice I ever ignored. I got...
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August 8, 2016 Andrew Sargent
Society, Theology
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We’ve been considering the identity of the grand “HE” in Isaiah 44:18. Speaking of those who make and worship idols, Isaiah says, “They do not know; they do not understand because he plastered over their eyes so they cannot see, their hearts so they cannot understand.” While Calvinists...
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August 8, 2016 Andrew Sargent
101 Most Misunderstood Verses, Bible Backgrounds, Biblical Language Issues, Old Testament Studies
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I’ve been asked to preach Psalm 82 in a couple weeks. I was a bit wary at first. The text is rife with scholarly controversy and I was uncertain that I had the time to disentangle the text’s mysteries. Then, a tad embarrassed by my own cowardice, I...
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August 5, 2016 Andrew Sargent
Biblical Theology, Old Testament Studies, Society
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In our last post on Isaiah 44:18, “Why Is It So Hard to Translate Isaiah 44:18?” we posited the translation “They do not know; they do not understand because he plastered over their eyes so they cannot see, their hearts so they cannot understand.” The all important question...
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August 5, 2016 Andrew Sargent
101 Most Misunderstood Verses, Biblical Language Issues, HAGALAH, Old Testament Studies
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Yes, you read that title correctly, but don’t throw stones, yet. There are things to be discovered in this event that our modern gender issues, word meanings and culture may have concealed from us. Let me explain and you might even be sorry you thought to punish me....
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August 3, 2016 Andrew Sargent
101 Most Misunderstood Verses, Bible Backgrounds, Biblical Studies, Biblical Theology, Inductive Study Methods, Old Testament Studies, Theology
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I will never understand why it is so hard to get a good translation of Isaiah 44:18. (Actually, I do understand, but that wouldn’t have made such a catchy first line.) Let’s start with these two: (NIV) They know nothing, they understand nothing; their eyes are plastered over...
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August 1, 2016 Andrew Sargent
101 Most Misunderstood Verses, Biblical Language Issues
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