Many are familiar with the James Ossuary, which hit the news to great fanfare in 2002, followed by the ensuing controversy regarding its authenticity. The limestone ossuary (bone box) dates to the first century and bears an inscription reading, “James, son of Joseph, brother of Jesus.” It was quickly disputed and declared a forgery by […] Weighing the Evidence: Is the James Ossuary Authentic? — Bible … Continue reading Weighing the Evidence: Is the James Ossuary Authentic?

I think we can all safely say there were no actual dragons involved, but what is the real story behind St George? Who was he and how did he become so famous? The flag of St George, now the flag of England, is enthusiastically flown by English football fans but George was actually from Lod,… St George and the Holy Land — ONE FOR ISRAEL Ministry Continue reading St George and the Holy Land

Paul views Israel’s temple as an essentially human structure, fulfilled in believers on earth as they worship the God of heaven. Yet Paul’s theology isn’t an NT innovation; it’s deeply rooted in the Hebrew Bible, most particularly in the book of Chronicles. IntroductionChronicles is few people’s favourite book. The index to Walter Moberley’s ‘Old Testament… The Theology of the Chronicler — Thoughts on Scripture Continue reading Genealogical Enrollment is Personal and Intimate

Tell him this is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘Here is the man whose name is the Branch, and he will branch out from his place and build the temple of the Lord. It is he who will build the temple of the Lord, and he will be clothed with majesty and will sit and rule on his throne. And he will be a priest on his throne (Zech. 6.12-13 NIV). … Continue reading The High Priest on His Throne

Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches (Mt. 13.32 NIV). The same birds that Greg Morse speaks about in Mt. 13.4 who pluck the sown word along the path are the same ones who perch in the mustard tree … Continue reading The Devil Goes to Church

The resurrection of Jesus is the center of Christian faith. If Christ is not raised, Paul says, our faith is worthless and we’re still in our sins. Unless he’s raised, Jesus’s life and death were utterly fruitless. If his body decayed in the tomb, Death won the battle with life and remains on the throne… Easter Bodies — First Things RSS Feed – Web Exclusives | … Continue reading The Last Enemy to be Destroyed is Death-1Cor. 15.26

Hiding behind what we only thought as useful, math, it turns out, helps cognition. Mathematics Teaches Us How to Think — First Things RSS Feed – Web Exclusives | Daily Writings From Our Top Writers | First Things Continue reading Metaphysical Math

Triablogue: Life After Our Resurrection Continue reading Do We Have “Eyes on the Prize”?

He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your ancestors had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD (Dt. 8.3 NIV). God inserts difficulties in His (sinful) people’s lives to show that He can overcome them, to sanctify us, … Continue reading Connections with the Noah and Esther Epics

God “desires all people to be saved,” Paul tells us — but clearly not all people are saved. Does this mean God cannot do what he wants to do? If God Desires All to Be Saved, Why Aren’t They? — Desiring God Continue reading God Afflicts, But Not ‘From the Heart.’

Christ’s global purpose to ransom people from every tribe and tongue can be summed up in his words, “I have other sheep. I must bring them also.”Listen Now Christ’s Plan for the Globe — and You — Desiring God Continue reading “Every Tribe” Into “A Kingdom”

https://www.firstthings.com/web-exclusives/2023/04/easter-and-history Continue reading Seeing History in the Rearview Mirror

Continue reading Jesus Symbolized by the Peacock

The Lord GOD hath opened mine ear,” says Isaiah in one of Holy Week’s most well-known passages (Isa. 50:5). His prophetic words were the result of God waking him up to open his ear “morning by morning” (50:4). False prophets speak their own words because they have closed ears. Isaiah’s open ears were the number-one… Silencing the Word — First Things RSS Feed – Web Exclusives … Continue reading Silencing the Word

Notes on Daniel 7: “One Like a Son of Man” in the Septuagint — Ad Fontes Continue reading “One Like a Son of Man” in the Septuagint

In his recent “political life of Jesus,” I Judge No One , David Lloyd Dusenbury makes the arresting claim that Jesus was what we’d call a political realist. Though he didn’t mount a Zealot rebellion, though he urged his followers to pay Caesar’s taxes, Jesus wasn’t apolitical. His keen observations on the ways of the… Jesus As Political Cynic — First Things RSS Feed – Web … Continue reading Jesus As Political Cynic

I think it’s fair to say that the last decade has witnessed a bit of a resurgence of academic interest in early Christianity. By “early Christianity,” I don’t mean the Christianity represented by the major figures in the fourth and fifth centuries when the church had risen to power—e.g., Athanasius, Constantine, Augustine. Rather, I am… Were Later Versions of Christianity Radically Different than Earlier Ones? Reflecting … Continue reading Were Later Versions of Christianity Radically Different than Earlier Ones?

A prominent Christian magazine recently warned against “deconstruction”—and it sounded pretty bad. “Fire,” “demolition,” and “ashes”—these were the disquieting words associated with “deconstruction.” In fact, deconstruction was linked to so-called exvangelicals and seemed to be simply a trendy new synonym for “apostasy.” Deconstruction, however, is not just de(con)struction. And it isn’t to be avoided at… Deconstructing Deconstruction — ThinkBetter Media Continue reading Deconstructing Deconstruction

However, the Day of the Lord will come like a thief in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements with intense heat will be dissolved, and the earth and its works will [not] be found. (2Pet. 3.10 my translation.) The primary translation decision of 2Pet. 3.10 involved how to interpret the last clause: the earth and its works will be … Continue reading No Reminders or Artifacts of Present Earth

But now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how can you turn back again to the weak and worthless elementary principles (stoichea) of the world, whose slaves you want to be once more? You observe days and months and seasons and years! (Gal.4.9-10 ESV). Many people have told me that all the religions of the world have the … Continue reading The Stoichea: “Constituent Parts”

A World God Could Admire: Recovering His Pleasure in Creation — Desiring God Continue reading Recovering His Pleasure in Creation

It is probably worth mentioning that Paul’s command in Col. 4.16 to have his letter read in neighboring churches was somewhat different than a pure personal correspondence between individuals. The Colossian and Laodicean churches were located on a major trade route (an extension of the Silk Road), and were wealthy (see Rev. 3.17). I think it unusual for them to have circulated the original document … Continue reading How Did the N.T. Books Get Their Titles?

God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’” (Ex. 3.14 ESV). Yeshua (Yeah shooa) is probably how people pronounced Jesus’ name in the first century. It was a common name, and the same as “Joshua” whom Moses named (see Num. 13.16). The name means “Jah saves.” The name “Yahveh,” … Continue reading Yeshua in the Bush

The bible is, of course, for everyone, especially for progressives it seems. Progressives and the Bible in the Gilded Age — Ad Fontes Continue reading The Bible is for Progressives

Continue reading Excavation at Shiloam

Medicating the Masses | Adrian Gaty | First Things Continue reading Conformity-or Else

Who Was St. Patrick? | Kevin DeYoung Continue reading The Evangelist-St. Patrick

In the O.T. the ‘to be’ verb is the same as the Name God revealed Himself to Abram (Gen. 12.1). The idea seems to be “the self-existing One”, or, “the always existing One,” or, the extended idea that Yahweh is the author of life. In the Book of John, Jesus referred to Himself as “ego eimi:” (“I Am”). He explicitly used the expression to connect … Continue reading The Divine Name is the Existential Verb: “I Am”

Continue reading The Rosetta Stone(s)

Don’t give up when darkness assails. There have been so many times when I didn’t think God could rescue but prayed anyway in hope of a miracle, and God delivered. Trust Him, seek Him, He will show you how great He is if you seek Him with all your heart. The Shadow We Cannot Shake: What to Do When Darkness Remains — Desiring God Continue reading Seek Deliverance Though Yet Ungiven