When the Enemy Comes in Like a Flood, You’ve been Misquoting Isaiah 59:19: Part 1—KJV
The pertinent part of Isaiah 59:19 reads in the King James Version, “When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the LORD shall lift up a…
101 Most Misunderstood Verses
Bible Backgrounds
Biblical Language Issues
HAGALAH
Inductive Study Methods
Old Testament Studies
Train Up a Child and Everything Is Your Fault, Part 3: Is Proverbs 22:6 a Promise?
In two previous posts I’ve been discussing Proverbs 22:6 and the translation issues involved in what seems a rather ambiguous central phrase, “upon the mouth of his way” which seems…
101 Most Misunderstood Verses
Bible Backgrounds
Biblical Language Issues
HAGALAH
Old Testament Studies
Train Up a Child and Everything Is Your Fault, Part 2: What is the way of the Child?
In a previous post, we turned our attention to a literal rendering of Proverbs 22:6, which being one of the most hurled about texts, whether in accusation, self-defense, or hopeful…
101 Most Misunderstood Verses
Biblical Language Issues
HAGALAH
Inductive Study Methods
Old Testament Studies
Train Up a Child and Everything Is Your Fault, Part 1: Translation Issues in Proverbs 22:6
Proverbs 22:6 is one of the most quoted, potentially mistranslated and, thus, misunderstood verses in the Bible. As commonly rendered, it is interpreted as a glorious promise of “do it…
Bible Study as Conversation: The Interdependence of Ages
I’ve been sharing my thoughts of late on the subject of reading Scripture in translation and the common discomfort that Evangelicals usually feel when scholars suggest that there is some…
Don’t Know Greek & Hebrew? Read Several Different Translations
Growing up it was not uncommon for the leaders in my church to claim that Scripture, being inspired, was easy to understand. Why would God speak to his people in…
Bible Translations are Both a Blessing and a Curse
I hardly need to recount the blessings of translating the Bible. It is the most basic sense of preaching… translations seek to present the word of God, the Gospel of…
Can You Trust Translations of the Bible?
I was asked once to deliver a lecture titled, “Is the Bible Reliable?” I asked, “Reliable for what?” One asks, “Can you trust translations of the Bible?” I counter ask,…
101 Most Misunderstood Verses
Bible Backgrounds
Biblical Language Issues
Biblical Studies
HAGALAH
Inductive Study Methods
New Testament Studies
NT's Use of the OT
Mark 7:19 and the Little Participle that Could
Recently, we’ve discussed the controversial aside which Mark seems to have added in Mark 7:19 to the effect that Jesus’ debate with the Pharisees over the “Traditions of the Elders”…
101 Most Misunderstood Verses
Bible Backgrounds
Biblical Language Issues
Biblical Studies
HAGALAH
Meeting the Jesus of Mark
New Testament Studies
Jesus May Have Declared All Foods Clean But I Still Won’t Eat Chilled Monkey Brains
I learned Hebrew from a Rabbi. Then I had to re-learn it from other sources. The Rabbi, you see, had a rather relaxed philosophy of language learning. He immersed our…
101 Most Misunderstood Verses
Biblical Language Issues
HAGALAH
Inductive Study Methods
Old Testament Studies
What You Didn’t Know You Didn’t Know about the “Still Small Voice” Could Fill A Blog Post
Today we have a recently engaged guest Blogger. John Donnelly is a Biblical Literacy Ministries Educator, Church Planter, & Part-year missionary to India. John has a Master’s in Old Testament…
Though Your Sins be Made White as Snow, You Still Might Goof Isaiah 1:18: Part 1—Red to White
Isaiah 1:18—almost every Christian I know can quote it. It is a common favorite of preachers who see in this verse a solid Old Testament promise of forgiveness in Jesus,…
101 Most Misunderstood Verses
Bible Backgrounds
Biblical Language Issues
HAGALAH
Inductive Study Methods
Old Testament Studies
Though Your Sins be Made White as Snow, You Still Might Goof Isaiah 1:18: Part 2—Nasty Grammar Questions
In part 1 of this series, I focused on the tendency to make too many assumptions about color terms in the Bible. The dilemma is that while we have no…
101 Most Misunderstood Verses
Bible Backgrounds
Biblical Language Issues
Biblical Theology
HAGALAH
Inductive Study Methods
Old Testament Studies
Re-imagining David and Goliath: Foreheads, Legs, and Sling Stones
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…
12 Quick Reasons Why Christian Leaders Should Learn Biblical Languages
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…
An Argument for Flexible Interpretation in Isaiah 44:18
The identity of “HE” in Isaiah 44:18 is in the end a mystery, but the question itself and the journey that results from the pursuit of an answer is invaluable.…
Who Put the Us in Genesis?
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…
Becoming Like our Idols in Isaiah 44:18
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…
God, Idols and the Human Heart in Isaiah 44:18
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…
Why Is It So Hard to Translate Isaiah 44:18?
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…