Biblical Scholarship

March 8, 2019September 30, 2019

Isaiah 13-15; Psalms 99-101

Isaiah 13: Even though I am struggling with Isaiah a little bit, I really do need to get into the history of this book. I need to figure out what scholars have learned about the historical setting of this book.

This chapter is about the overthrow of Babylon. We learn in the beginning that God intends to unleash his fury on Babylon. God will put together a huge army to take out Babylon. There is a lot of description here about the horrible things that will help to these people. It’s kind of intense. For example, this is pretty intense: “Their infants will be crushed before their eyes; their houses plundered, their women raped” (CEB, v. 16, p. 1114 OT). DAMN!

March 12, 2018September 30, 2019

3/10 Reading (Proverbs 20-22; Psalms 90-92)

Proverbs 20: Here’s the ones I find most interesting in this chapter:

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March 11, 2018September 30, 2019

3/7 Reading (Proverbs 10-12; Matthew 4)

Looking in the notes revealed some really interesting aspects of the proverbs attributed to Solomon (Proverbs 10:1-22:16). First, the first half of Solomon’s proverbs (10:1-15:33) are contrasting statements (antithetic parallelism), in which the second line restates the first line in an opposite way and the second half are synthetic statements, in which the second line repeats or extends the message of the first line. Pretty cool. Second, there are many common themes in Solomon’s proverbs: “Along with the more generic wise/foolish and righteous/wicked themes, note the frequency of themes such as wealth/poverty, work/sloth, speech (truth/lying, etc.), relationships (neighbors, family, king), and attitudes (anger, love/hatred, etc.)” (from How to Read the Bible Book by Book).

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March 7, 2018September 30, 2019

3/3 Reading (Proverbs 1-3; Psalm 89)

To anyone reading this, if you don’t have a study bible, get one! I recommend either the CEB study bible or the NRSV study bible. Both are very interesting.

Introduction to Proverbs: The CEB study bible has a nice introduction to Proverbs. I especially like part of it. Instead of rewriting the whole part, I’m just going to include a screenshot below (p. 1006 OT):

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February 28, 2018September 30, 2019

2/27 Reading (Job 31-33; 2 Timothy 3)

Job 31: This chapter marks the end of Job’s tenth speech. In this chapter he asks God to directly face him. Job actually declares an oath, declaring his innocence against seven possible charges: “deceit (vv. 5–8), adultery (vv. 9–12), disregard of servants (vv. 13–15), disregard of the poor (vv. 16–23), trust in wealth (vv. 24–28), rejoicing at the misfortune of others (vv. 29–34), and assault on the land (vv. 38–40b)” (NRSV Study Bible notes, p. 757). In essence, Job is presenting his case again. He is so confident he is right that he says he is willing to accept punishment if he is lying.

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February 21, 2018September 30, 2019

2/17 Reading (Job 25-27; Psalms 82-85)

I’ve been so swamped at work these past few weeks that I got behind, again. So I adjusted the schedule, again. But, it’s my schedule, so it’s all good.

Job 25: We see Bildad’s very short third response here. He seems to be arguing that God is simply too important and great to be questioned by Job. Bildad does directly ask Job “How can a person be innocent before God” (25:4), seeming to challenge Job’s earlier arguments that he has done nothing wrong. Still sticking to their arguments.

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January 31, 2018September 30, 2019

1/30 Reading (Job 13-15; Titus 1)

Job 13: Job starts this chapter with a declaration that he knows everything his friends know and instead wants “to speak to the Almighty; I would gladly present my case to God” (13:3). And ouch…Job flat out tells his friends that they are “plasterers of lies; ineffective healers” (13:4). He urges them to stop talking and actually listen to his arguments. He tells them that they clearly are biased against him. He then presents a compelling argument about his desire to directly speak to God:

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January 24, 2018September 30, 2019

1/22 Reading (Esther 4-6; 1 Timothy 1)

Esther 4: Esther learns of Haman’s plot to destroy all the Jews because Mordecai is dressed in mourning clothes outside the King’s gate. She initially tells him that she is safe, but he makes it clear that she needs to do something to stop this from happening. He even suggests that perhaps this is why she was chosen as queen, to stop this action.

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January 23, 2018September 30, 2019

1/20 Reading (Esther 1-3; Psalm 78)

Introduction to Esther: The introduction is interesting. I really enjoy reading two different versions of the bible. I learn something from each one and I feel I’m getting a more complete picture. For example, the intro in the CEB study bible identifies three themes: importance of proportion, the challenge of living a faithful life in an unfaithful world, and the importance of the written word (p. 765 OT – 766 OT). Among many interesting things in the NRSV version is this little gem: “Furthermore, both Esther and Song of Solomon celebrate, albeit in different contexts, the power of feminine sexuality” (p. 707). As I’ve said many times, it’s interesting how many of these readings are timely. In this situation, I’m starting this book on the same day as the women’s march (1/20/18). Here’s another interesting statement: “The story’s purpose is to entertain, but more importantly to demonstrate the inevitability of retributive justice and, paradoxically, the need for oppressed minorities to act shrewdly and boldly for that justice to prevail” (p. 708). We live in a time where the oppression of minorities is becoming even more prominent. This should be an interesting read.

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January 17, 2018September 30, 2019

1/16 Reading (Nehemiah 4-6; Philippians 1)

Nehemiah 4: Opposition to the construction of the wall grew considerably as the people became more organized. Enough to the point that Nehemiah set up guards to protect the workers and prayed to God for his help. The opposition pulled back because they realized it would no longer be easy to destroy them.

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Tag: Biblical Scholarship

Isaiah 13-15; Psalms 99-101

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3/10 Reading (Proverbs 20-22; Psalms 90-92)

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3/7 Reading (Proverbs 10-12; Matthew 4)

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3/3 Reading (Proverbs 1-3; Psalm 89)

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2/27 Reading (Job 31-33; 2 Timothy 3)

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2/17 Reading (Job 25-27; Psalms 82-85)

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1/30 Reading (Job 13-15; Titus 1)

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1/22 Reading (Esther 4-6; 1 Timothy 1)

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1/20 Reading (Esther 1-3; Psalm 78)

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1/16 Reading (Nehemiah 4-6; Philippians 1)

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