I am reading The Oxford History of the Biblical World.
A few interesting points. There are parallel stories. One of the most surprising is that from the Song of Deborah you count 10 tribes, not 12. Of which 2 are not considered tribes generally.
Author: Caleb
What do we learn of Paul’s Journeys from his letters?
I recently went through Tom Wright’s book Paul: A Biography. It made me think about what we would learn about Paul’s background and comings and goings if we did not have the book of Acts. The results were quite surprising to me. It turns out we learn a lot. I am going through Paul’s letters…
The early Christians and circumcision?
How did the early Christians come to believe that gentiles did not need to be circumcised? For us today it seems obvious but in those times they believed that the Law was given by God and it was a clear requirement of the law. We still believe that. Circumcision, along with food laws and Sabbath,…
Notes from Son of God no Amazon Prime
I learned a few interesting nuggets of information watching Son of God from Amazon Prime.
The references from Ignatious were interesting. I looked them up in the book, Early Christian Writings.
By the Hand of Mormon
The founder was called Joseph Smith. Born 1805 and dies 1844. The Book of Mormon was published in 1830. He did not have an educated background. He lived in an era when folk spirituality was a big part of Christianity and prophecy and visions were very popular.
How do I share the gospel?
I have read quite a bit of theology recently and it has benefited me in a lot of ways, but I feel a but confused in other ways. One of the key issues I am a little confused about is ‘what is the gospel?’ and ‘How do I share it?’ Previously I would have said…
Notes from the Conclusion to Echoes of Scripture in the Letters of Paul
Paul quotes most from Isaiah, The Psalms, Deuteronomy and Genesis. Isaiah is an obvious choice with its large focus on eschatological hope, and also the inclusion of the gentiles. The Psalms would be a good choice as the songbook of the Jews and the early Christians. Deuteronomy’s emphasis on blessings and curses fits neatly into early Christian belief.
Overview of Romans
The gospel reveals the covenant justice of God.
God has come to put the world to rights.
The good news is about God’s Son, and power is released when Jesus, the Crucified One, Israel’s Messiah, raised from the dead is proclaimed Lord of the World.
Mark in 1 Go
Yesterday I listened to (on my Bible Audio app) the Gospel of Mark in pretty much one sitting. Here are some notes on what struck me. There is the intensity of it. The intro about the Good News then the quotation mixing Malachi and Isaiah. Then soon we have the time is fulfilled. Miracles some…
Summary – How God became King
The main message of this book is to do with the gospels – what are they there for? The answer in short is that Jesus came not just to die that we could be saved via justification by faith, but to start the process of bringing the world back to God’s original plan. After Adam went astray…
Finding God in the Psalms
This is a collection of unpolished thoughts on this book which I have been reading over the last month. What I have taken away which I consider of most importance is that all of creation is worshipping God, and that when we engage in worship, especially singing and praying the psalms, we are transformed. Like…
Which came first the Didache or the Gospels?
The Didache definitely has common material with the gospel of Matthew. The Didache presents this as the teaching of the apostles; Matthew presents this as the teaching of Jesus. Is this a significant difference? Surely the followers of Jesus would follow Jesus, and his teaching, if they are faithful. The Didache does say the teaching…
Matthew’s interweaving of Old Testament Texts
Matthew often quotes from more than two places. Here he has the main body from Isaiah 9, but hints from Isaiah 42, such as using ‘sat in darkness’ as in Chapter 42 rather than ‘walked in darkness’ as in Chapter 9. The implication is that Jesus is the light to the nations. There is another link…
Seutonius on Jesus
In Claudius 25 Suetonius refers to the expulsion of Jews by Claudius and states (in Edwards’ translation): “Since the Jews constantly made disturbances at the instigation of Chrestus, he expelled them from Rome.” In Acts of the Apostles (18:2) the writer makes the following parallel commentary “And he found a certain Jew named Aquila, a…
Brief Summary of Apocrypha
Tobit Carried away captive to Nineveh. Had a political post with Shalmanesar. Tobit mentions his own righteousness, his givings to the poor, and particularly his burying of Jewish corpses left out. This annoyed the king. He says that those who give to the poor are blessed. He has a son called Tobias. One day Tobit is sleeping outside…
Brief Notes on 1 and 2 Maccabees
1 Maccabees Alexander the Great son of Philip of Macedonia wins against Darius of the Medes and Persians. Kills many kings. When he dies he splits his empire up among 4 generals who grew up with him. A bit further on Antiochus Epiphanes defeats Egypt. Then wants all his lands to give up their religions and sacrifice the Greek…
The Early Christians
Thoughts from a short book I read published by Day One. The conditions were good for the start of Christianity. The Greeks had spread their culture, and consequently language, far and wide throughout the Mediterranean. This meant only one language was really needed to communicate with people everywhere the early Christians went. The Romans had…
Summary: On Rock or Sand? John Sentamu
1. Introduction “Stability and hope are linked to purpose and productivity” There are vast swathes of the country, particularly outside of London, that are in serious economic difficulty with few jobs and low output. And in London growth is found at an individual level with poverty never far away. A lot of different schemes have…