Home » Posts tagged Interpretation (Page 2)

Saul Loses the Girl and Gains a Doomed Throne

In recent posts, I’ve been considering biblical variations on the type-scene, “Foreigner at the Well.”[1] Perhaps you are tired of reading about it… you have been reading about it haven’t you?  I’m sorry; is my insecurity showing? Let’s try this again with a little more confidence. Thou shalt...
Continue reading

I’ll Have One “Foreigner at the Well” with a Twist

  In my recent post, “Wells: The Singles’ Bars of the Ancient Near East,”—I just call ‘em like I see ‘em Folks! Don’t judge me—I discussed the beauty of the ancient type-scene, “Foreigner at the Well.” We discussed how every culture has popular literary scenarios drawn from elements...
Continue reading

Wells: The Singles’ Bars of the Ancient Near East

One of my great-uncles, a true good-ol’boy from west Texas, once said to my great-grandmother, “Mamma, it’s hard to find a good woman like you out there.” She replied, “There are plenty of good women like me out there. They  just don’t hang out in the places you...
Continue reading

Hallelujah: Call “of” Praise or Call “to” Praise

After discussing, in my recent blog post, “Hallelujah is a Sentence,” that the biblical “term” Hallelujah has grammar and that we should both be aware of that grammar and use the phrase accordingly in our worship songs, I received two types of criticism. Let’s call them sniveling and...
Continue reading

What I Mean by Biblical Theology

How hard could it possibly be to find agreement on the meaning of a phrase as simple as biblical theology? In truth… harder than I’d like. Biblical theology is not, after all, merely theological ideas that are “biblical,” and the history of the phrase biblical theology is, unfortunately,...
Continue reading

Hallelujah is a Sentence

At the risk of sounding like a petulant child… well, a petulant child that complains about the frequent misuse of ancient Hebrew in weekly church services…. Which now that I think about it isn’t really childish at all…. Okay, so… at the risk of sounding like a scholarly...
Continue reading

Bible Reading is Cross-cultural Communication

Communication at its most basic is the use of symbols to affect the understanding of another. The symbols at a communicator’s disposal are both verbal and non-verbal. Verbal tools are spoken & heard symbols that represent ideas. Non-verbal tools are unspoken symbols that represent ideas. Phonology—uses words (individual...
Continue reading

5 Ways to Avoid Miscommunication

Let’s be honest, when you understand what communication is at its roots, you’ll realize that you cannot avoid miscommunication… not altogether. It takes two to tango (That’s what my betters say, anyway… personally, I’m more of a Bugs Bunny Square Dance sort of fella’) and communication requires both...
Continue reading

Learning How Communication Works, So You Can Work it Better

A centipede was happy – quite!Until a toad in funSaid, “Pray, which leg moves after which?”This raised her doubts to such a pitch,She fell exhausted in the ditchNot knowing how to run. (Katherine Craster (1841-74) A spider met a centipedewhile hurrying down the street,“How do you move at...
Continue reading

A Biblical Theologian in a Systematic Theology World

When I passed inspection for receiving my ministerial license, the individual responsible for my review spread out, like a row of piano keys, the many pages of answers I gave to the theological questions I was asked to address in the process. He ummm-ed a bit, scratched his...
Continue reading

10 Things You Need to Know About Hebrew Poetry

Poetry, by definition, is usually regarded as distinct from another category of writing called Prose. To express it simply, Prose is normal writing. It reflects the speech patterns of typical daily conversation, even if a bit more planned and carefully refined. Poetry then is an alternate way of...
Continue reading

3 Reasons Every Christian Leader Should Learn Biblical Languages

I realize that the second someone makes a statement like, “Every Christian leader should learn biblical languages,” feelings of condemnation erupt. “So, everything I’ve done for X  years was a misguided waste?” “So, I’m not good enough?” “So, I can’t properly interpret the Scriptures in English?” If I...
Continue reading

Nazarenes, Rednecks, and Other Well-meaning Slurs

I love puzzles, always have. Growing up, I saw puzzles of all kinds as a natural exercise of my desire to be a detective someday, tracing out subtle clues to help me zero in on bad guys. Becoming a biblical scholar, then, has always seemed right on target...
Continue reading

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 vital element of Bible study that those who are dependent on translation are missing. I am unapologetic over...
Continue reading

Social Media Auto Publish Powered By : XYZScripts.com