Ezekiel

By | September 3, 2010
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Most of the prophets that you ‘re now diving into have two basic messages: judgment and hope. The people deserve judgment because of their sin, but they have hope because God has made promises to Israel and God always keeps his promises. Ezekiel is like the other prophets this way, but his book is pretty neatly divided into a judgment half (chs. 1-24) and a hope half (chs. 33-48). In the middle there are oracles against the nations (chs. 25-32). Those oracles against the nations are good for Israel, because when God punishes Israel’s enemies, then Israel can prosper.

Some of the stories in the first half of the book are entertaining (and a few are gross), but I really like the second half of the book where Ezekiel describes for a long time just how great things will be one day. Ezekiel tells us more about this than Jeremiah does, because Ezekiel wrote this part after Jerusalem was destroyed. Thus he didn’t have to worry about confusing his readers and making them think things were going to be good when they really weren’t. But now that Jerusalem has fallen (ch. 33), Ezekiel can describe at length how God is going to put all of the pieces back together. That includes not only changing the hearts of the people, but it means that God will defend the nation against the enemies (chs. 38-39) and build them a new temple where he will come and live (chs. 40-45). Things will be so different in that day that even the Dead Sea will be fresh water and have fish in it!

9/ii

By | September 2, 2010
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I don’t believe I’ve done very well my with “favorite days in my life” series.  Here’s a photo I took nine years ago today.  I ‘ll just say that the births of our first two didn’t go so well.  The third went extremely well and the memories are sweet.

Kelli with Luke, Mark and Timothy, tb090201809

Nicodemus and the Samaritan Woman

By | September 2, 2010
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A professor of mine made this insightful observation about the stories in John 3-4.

I would have treated Nicodemus like he treated the woman at the well, and I would have treated the woman at the well like he treated Nicodemus. Why? Because I am a legalist. Jesus does it the opposite.

Not Your Father’s IBEX

By | September 1, 2010
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When students arrived in Israel a few days ago, it was not wizened faces of experience that greeted them.  Instead a youthful band marked by innocence welcomed the newcomers.  Once upon a time, IBEX was largely defined by the presence of three stalwart teachers, one bearded, one tall, one kind.  Nowadays the only face alumni will recognize is that of Becky, for the three (and their families) are all currently living in (gasp) the States.  How the times change.  For the scoop, see the IBEX volunteer’s blog.

IBEX Staff meeting, August 1996

Once upon a time… (1996)

Jeremiah and Lamentations

By | August 31, 2010
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Jeremiah

Jeremiah is sometimes called the “weeping prophet” because of his statement that his eyes were a fountain of tears (9:1). That is somewhat of an appropriate title because nearly all of Jeremiah’s message is negative. He spoke just before the Jerusalem was destroyed by the Babylonians (in 586) and the people were carried off into exile. Jeremiah’s main message was: you are wicked and you deserve God’s judgment. To us today, it gets a bit weary reading lots of negative things over and over again. But repetition was important because the consequences of disobeying were (and still are) severe.

Your head should pop up when you get to chapter 30. The next four chapters (30-33) really stand apart in the book because they are long messages of hope. And it’s not flimsy hope either. These are some of the richest passages of hope, particularly when you realize that Jeremiah was giving them to a people about to be carried away to Babylon. But God made some promises to his people and he intends to keep them. One of the most remarkable ones is that he will make a New Covenant with his people. This New Covenant will be different from the Old Covenant because it will cause the person’s heart to be changed so that he fully obeys God’s word. This means that the people will never be carried into exile again because they won’t disobey.

Lamentations

Tradition says that Jeremiah wrote this book after he saw the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians. It is a series of five lament poems, each of the first four written as an acrostic (each letter beginning with the next letter in the alphabet). Most of this book is a sad memory of what happened, but pay attention to the few verses that give hope for the future. Notice what the basis of this hope is—the very character of God himself.

2011 Calendar

By | August 30, 2010
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Over the years, I have been able to contribute photos to a number of calendars created by various organizations.  This year a large calendar company contacted me for photos for a “Lands of the Bible” calendar.  The product is out now and in my opinion it’s the best calendar I’ve ever been associated with.  I like the places they chose, the pictures they used, and the quality of the details.  It’s a large calendar (12 by 12 inches) and it has some of my favorite photographs. 

Instead of doing the work to post photos here, I ‘ll just direct you to the publisher’s website where you can see a few views.  My understanding is that these will be for sale in places like Walmart, Barnes & Noble, and the like.  If you see them there, let me know.

image

I was able to buy some at a discount ($14 list) and I plan to make them available to the readers of the BiblePlaces website and blog.  I thought I would give you first shot at the limited quantity I have.  I have passed all savings on to purchasers (I’m not making anything on it except for the flat fee they paid me for the photos) and got the cost down as low as possible.  Since shipping is so expensive, naturally the cost is less if you ship multiple calendars to the same address.  In short, the total cost for one is $12, for two it is $21, for three $29, etc. 

[For readers here only, if you mail me a check, you can deduct $1 per calendar off the total, but because of limited quantity, please email me when you mail the check so I can reserve the calendar(s) for you (and I ‘ll send you my address).]

I think they make nice presents (in fact, I just gave one to an old TMC professor who stopped by our house today for lunch).

To order online with a credit card, go here.

A Wasted Vacation?

By | August 26, 2010
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Earlier this summer my family took a nice, long vacation.  It was a mixture of old friends, family, and some sightseeing.  It was not relaxing but it was enjoyable.

Tonight, however, marks three weeks since we returned home.  Until this point I/we have done very little follow-up on our trip.  Some of us have downloaded our pictures, but none of us have named them.  Some of us have written thank-you notes, but none have been mailed.  We have not reviewed our trip by looking at each other’s photos, nor have we sent photos off to friends as we promised.  I have not written any reflections on the trip here or elsewhere.  On the phone, I probably told my mom that we had fun and where we went.  But that’s about it.

My question is, without such post-trip reflection, was the trip wasted?  Memories fade quickly, and without the interaction and reflection and photo-viewing, it seems to me that the “reality” is not as strong as it would have been.  I can’t say that the trip was a complete waste, but there must be a percentage of “loss” because of the post-trip failures.  Was the trip only 50% worthwhile? 

Obviously, there is no benefit in trying to quantify it.  But it may be helpful to recognize that what happens after the trip may contribute to the trip’s enjoyment, value, and enduring memory.  Of course, this is true for pre-trip preparation as well.  I remember as a kid nearly as much the anticipation and planning for our six-week drive to/from Alaska as I do of the trip itself. 

I feel that I fail on both ends.  Part of it is the thought that the vacation is the vacation.  By taking that time off, I’m taking off all I’ve got.  Before I go, I have to scramble to get everything (else) done.  When I get back, the hole takes a long time to climb out of.

I suppose one solution would be to take the total amount of time possible for the trip and subtract pre- and post-trip time necessary to maximize the value of the trip.  Then take the shortened trip in the middle of one’s “vacation days.”   Yet it just seems like such a waste to sit at home on vacation.

I don’t know what the answer is.  I don’t think it’s in writing posts like this one.  In the time I spent, I could have written a thank-you note and labeled several dozen photos.

100727160tbddd The Bean, Chicago

Isaiah (Bible Reading Guide)

By | August 24, 2010
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Isaiah is not only a long book, it’s a difficult book. But, as you know, it’s also one of my favorite books. How do you make sense of it? As you ‘re reading, see if you can figure out which of these main themes Isaiah is discussing:

1. Judgment and exile – the people are guilty for their sin and thus they are going to be punished by being removed from the land of Israel. This is more frequent in chapters 1-12.

2. Hope and the Messiah – God isn’t just going to take his people out of the land, he is also going to bring them back. He is also going to give them a new king, and unlike the rest of Israel’s kings, this one will be righteous and kind. This king is described briefly in various places and especially in chapters 7-11. Beginning in chapter 42, this same figure is called the “servant” (though not all references to a “servant” are to this same person).

3. The nations – while this may seem boring, this is a very important part of the book. God uses other nations to punish Israel, but he is always in control of all the nations (chs. 13-23). Israel is often tempted to trust the nations instead of God, and he hates that (chs. 28-35).

4. God – this book gives some of the best descriptions of who God is. Chapter 40, which I taught in Sunday School yesterday [at the time of writing], is an extraordinary section on the character and abilities of God.

5. The Servant – I mentioned him above under “Messiah,” but I must come back and encourage you to pay special attention to 52:13-53:12. This is the fourth song about the servant (also in chs. 42, 49, 50), and this climax tells how the servant would die for the sins of his people. This is one of the best passages about Jesus, and it’s not even in the New Testament!

6. Faith – the primary question that runs throughout the book is this: will you trust God?

Ecclesiastes and Song of Songs

By | August 22, 2010
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Ecclesiastes

This can be a tough book to navigate, particularly because it seems to say so many things that contradict the rest of the Bible. The best way to understand it as the honest reflections of a great king who learned that all that the world values ultimately isn’t worth anything. What does matter? Throughout the book you see glimpses of the truth: fear God, trust God, enjoy your life, and know that God will judge you for what you do. Pay attention to the conclusion of the book, as this gives the “answer” to the long search.

Song of Songs

This book reads like a series of love poems between a man and a woman. For that reason, some people have said that it doesn’t belong in the Bible. But often what others say is not that it doesn’t belong, but rather that it has a “deeper meaning.” I disagree. I think that the purpose of the book is to celebrate the beauty of love between one man and one woman committed to each other for life in marriage. God gave sex as a wedding present to his children, and this book expresses delight in that.

I think that the poems in the book tell a story. At the beginning, the lovers are praising each other (ch. 1) and longing for each other (ch. 2). Then the woman is searching for her lover before she sees him coming up for the wedding (ch. 3). After the honeymoon (ch. 4), the couple has a little problem which sends the woman out searching for her husband (ch. 5). She finds him and then he describes her a couple of times (chs. 6-7). The book ends with an expression of commitment to each other.

One key phrase in the book that is repeated is “do not arouse or awaken love until it so desires.” That’s a warning that the kind of love described in this book is designed by God only for married people.

Save Me, You are My God

By | August 21, 2010
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I was always taught not to make fun of other people and to ask “what would Jesus do?”  Well, if the question was, what would Isaiah do, the answer is—he would make fun of people! 

You probably won’t appreciate this so much if you ‘re in between stops at CNN.com and DailyJokeoftheDay.com, but I’m guessing that Isaiah expected his hearers/readers to laugh and laugh and laugh.  At least the ones that were not indicted.

     The blacksmith takes a tool

and works with it in the coals;

he shapes an idol with hammers,

he forges it with the might of his arm.

He gets hungry and loses his strength;

he drinks no water and grows faint.

     The carpenter measures with a line

and makes an outline with a marker;

he roughs it out with chisels

and marks it with compasses.

He shapes it in the form of man,

of man in all his glory,

that it may dwell in a shrine.

     He cut down cedars,

or perhaps took a cypress or oak.

He let it grow among the trees of the forest,

or planted a pine, and the rain made it grow.

     It is man’s fuel for burning;

some of it he takes and warms himself,

he kindles a fire and bakes bread.

But he also fashions a god and worships it;

he makes an idol and bows down to it.

     Half of the wood he burns in the fire;

over it he prepares his meal,

he roasts his meat and eats his fill.

He also warms himself and says,

“Ah! I am warm; I see the fire.”

     From the rest he makes a god, his idol;

he bows down to it and worships.

He prays to it and says,

“Save me; you are my god”  (Isa 44:12-17,NIV).

My big question is, how would this satire read if Isaiah was writing it today?  What would he mock?  Who would be outraged?  Would we denounce him as a “crazy fundamentalist” or have some other rationalization?  I wonder.

I think that if I was teaching, I’d require my students to write a modern version.  If you have the time, you might consider it.