The satsumas of Christmas – biblical studies carnivals

03/01/2016 ~ RICHARD GOODE

For me the best thing about Christmas has always been the little satsuma orange that is found at the bottom of the Christmas stocking (or, in the ostentatious days of my youth, the pillowcase). Even as a toddler, waddling around in nappied splendour (diapers for my US friends) with a copy of Plutarch clutched under my arm, I had realised that the lurid baubles and trinkets of Christmastide were but tawdry wreaths of misguided expectations that inevitably ended in overconsumption and gout.

Just three minutes after the manic frenzy of denuding the presents of their wrappings (the confetti of paper had still yet to reach the floor) and the downing of the last pickled onion, I would long for something fresh, something real, something that would cut through the jaded palette from which Christmas was painted. That was when I would reach into the bottom of my pillowcase and pluck from it the satsuma…

Follow the link forall the Goode’s!

 

Source: The satsumas of Christmas – biblical studies carnivals

The Real Kosher Jesus by Dr. Mike Brown- reading a second time.

I’m 7% through this book and think you might like it – “The Real Kosher Jesus: Revealing the Mysteries of the Hidden Messiah” by Michael L. Brown.

Start reading it for free: http://amzn.to/1R4Q5pg

Supernatural by Michael S Heiser-A must read

I just finished this book and think you might like it – “Supernatural: What the Bible Teaches about the Unseen World And Why It Matters” by Michael S. Heiser.

Start reading it for free: http://amzn.to/1R8Fqu7

Build A Boat

Shared from The River Walk, a snippet.

 

So Noah did everything as the Lord commanded him. (Genesis 7:5)

Read: Genesis 3:1-4:26, Matthew 3:7-4:11, Psalm 3:1-8, Proverbs 1:10-19

Relate: “Build a boat.”

“But God, I don’t want to move. My family is pretty settled here and the coast is an awful long way off. They don’t even speak the same language down there.”

“I didn’t tell you to move. I said build a boat.”

“A boat.”

“Yes. Build a boat. A big one.”

“Ummmm… how big is big?”

“450 feet long, 75 feet wide, 45 feet high.”

Gulp. “Yep. That’s big. Why does it need to be so big?”

“It will contain a zoo.”

“A zoo, inside a boat, in the desert…”

“Yes. Because it is going to rain. A lot.”

“Ummmm God? What’s rain?”

React: “You’re insane?” Has anyone ever said that to us when we begin to step out in obedience to what God has called us to do? If not, are we actually stepping out in obedience to God’s commands? Are we even listening or are we allowing the noise of this world and our sin drown out His voice? What are some of the “build a boat” type commands God has in store for us in 2016?

 

Source: Build A Boat

Happy Are the Peacemakers

Shared from My Heart is for Israel, a snippet.

 

Sitting at the Feet of Yeshua

 In my last post, we began looked at the how happy are those who are pure in heart.  In this post, we will explore the seventh Beatitude regarding the peacemakers.

“How blessed are those who make peace! for they will be called sons of God.”  ~ Matthew 5:9

Verse 9 teaches us about becoming bridge builders.  It also implies that, “we have to make peace with ourselves before we become peace makers with others.”  Once again, Yeshua takes this lesson from the Tanakh.  Isaiah 54:13 says, “All your children will be taught by Adonai; your children will have great peace.”

In Romans 12:18, Rabbi Sha’ul exhorts us to “live in peace with all people.”   He goes on to say to the Ephesians, “always be humble, gentle and patient, bearing with one another in love, and making every effort to preserve the unity the Spirit gives through the binding power of shalom” ~ Ephesians 4:1-3.

The Jewish people were looking for a peacemaker.  They were longing for the Messiah to lead them in war, to conquer all the Gentiles, and to rule the world in peace.  Peace is more than a passive existence; it’s a very positive state of good.  A peacemaker is more than one who stops quarrels; he brings good into other people’s lives…

Source: Happy Are the Peacemakers

Beverly Roberts Gaventa on Romans 9-11

Shared from Biblical Studies Online, a snippet. Follow the source to view videos.

 

Professor Beverly Roberts Gaventa delivered the 28th Carmichael-Walling Lectures at Abilene Christian University on November 6, 2014. ACU has made available videos of the two lectures:

God’s Outsized Faithfulness to Israel: Thinking Again about Romans 9-11

 

Source: Beverly Roberts Gaventa on Romans 9-11

Adela Yarbro Collins on Scripture and Women in Revelation

Shared from Biblical Studies Online, a snippet. Follow the source to view videos, they’re excellent!

Professor Adela Yarbro Collins delivered the 29th Carmichael-Walling Lectures at Abilene Christian University on November 12, 2015. Videos of both lectures are available.

The book of Revelation is rich in both Scriptural allusion and symbolic imagery. The first lecture will provide an overview and critical assessment of scholarship on intertextuality in Revelation, highlighting the book’s use of Scripture. The second lecture will consider female symbols in Revelation, particularly focusing on the symbolic woman of Revelation 17 often referred to as “The Whore of Babylon.”

 

Source: Adela Yarbro Collins on Scripture and Women in Revelation

Genesis 3:8 NET Version

“Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God moving about in the orchard at the breezy time of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the orchard. ”

http://ref.ly/r/gs-netbible/Ge3.8 via the Logos Bible Android app.

Benefits of a Principled Analysis of BH Prepositions

Shared from Old School Script, a snippet.

 

Posted by Kris Lyle

I recently received the final proof of an article accepted by Journal for Semitics. You can find a copyhere. If you’re interested in semantics, prepositions, methodology, or Biblical Hebrew, chances are you’ll enjoy reading it.

Lyle, K. (2015) “Benefits of a principled analysis of Biblical Hebrew prepositions”, Journal for Semitics24/2, 403–426.

With the publication of this article, that means I’ve had 3 articles published and one SBL presentation for the year 2015. Now before you think I’m bragging, you should know something about the nature of getting published in a peer-reviewed journal—the process from submission to final proof can take a long time.

What I’m trying to say is that in 2015 it’s not that I was particularly productive as much as it is that some mental gardening that began in 2013 finally blossomed into published pieces. I’m learning this timeframe isn’t that uncommon, but I’ll admit, it was a learning curve to catch onto—especially when some delays were just out of my hands.

My first article submission and acceptance with Hebrew Studies spoiled me. It still took about 6 months but there were no hiccups or extended delays. These last three were something of a different story. And with this most recent article, it’s a story I’m looking forward to sharing in a future post—not because of any fault of JSem but because this article went through the ringer.

Three rejections, and a final acceptance.

Yes—I submitted it 4 times (granted, with increasingly significant revisions). Some might be embarrassed by these odds but my hope is that in sharing the story future scholars preparing their first articles could learn from my experiences and have a more successful go at it the first (or second) time around.

 

Source: Benefits of a PrincipledAnalysis of BH Prepositions

Logos “Free Book of the Month” for January 2016 – The JPS Torah Commentary: Exodus

Shared from Reading Acts, a snippet for a free resource from Logos Bible Software.

 

Logos Bible Software is offering an excellent book for their “Free Book of the Month” promotion, The JPS Torah Commentary: Exodus by Nahum Sarna. Sarna served as the general edited of the series published by The Jewish Publication Society (with Chaim Potok as the literary editor). Sarna’s commentary on Genesis was published in 1989, Exodus appeared in 1991. From the introduction to the Commentary series:

In the last century, a new way of looking at the Bible developed. Research into the ancient Near East and its texts recreated for us the civilizations out of which the Bible emerged. In this century, there has been a revival of Jewish biblical scholarship; Israeli and American scholars, in particular, concentrating in the fields of archaeology, biblical history, Semitic languages, and the religion of Israel, have opened exciting new vistas into the world of the Scriptures. For the first time in history, we have at our disposal information and methodological tools that enable us to explore the biblical text in a way that could never have been done before. This new world of knowledge, as seen through the eyes of contemporary Jewish scholars and utilizing at the same time the insights of over twenty centuries of traditional Jewish exegesis, is now available for the first time to a general audience in The JPS Torah Commentary.

In addition to this free book, Logos is also offering an “almost free” book, the JPS Commentary on Jonah by Uriel Simon. The commentary is only $1.99 for a limited time. Logos also offers a contest to win the eleven volumes of the JPS TANAKH commentary series for your Logos library. That is a $399.95 retail value, so enter early and often.

 

Source: Logos “Free Book of the Month” for January 2016 – The JPS Torah Commentary: Exodus