tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-72495941623078751822024-03-05T17:27:03.446-08:00Bible and JiveHere is a guide to reading the Bible (and some non-canonical texts) critically from cover to cover.John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.comBlogger49125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249594162307875182.post-83444247204001597602009-07-14T10:11:00.000-07:002009-07-14T10:17:34.536-07:00How to Use this Site<span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">This is a guide not an end. The easiest way to get going is to read </span><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://bibleandjive.blogspot.com/2008/01/bible-cover-to-cover-overview.html"><br /></a></span><ol style="font-family: arial;"><li><span style="font-size:130%;"><a href="http://bibleandjive.blogspot.com/2008/01/bible-cover-to-cover-overview.html">The Overview</a></span></li><li><span style="font-size:130%;"><a href="http://bibleandjive.blogspot.com/2008/01/month-by-month-reading-schedule.html">The Month by Month Reading Schedule</a><br /></span></li></ol><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Then go to the sidebar for the "month by month" guide and take the quizzes for each month. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">This was an exercise I did with my congregation in 2008. It took us a year. You can go at your own pace, of course. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Browse through the blog and follow the links to other resources. Let me know if you find broken links or know of other resources that are helpful. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Enjoy!</span><br /></span>John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249594162307875182.post-4119221721098512462008-11-25T18:10:00.000-08:002008-11-25T18:14:56.673-08:00December Quiz<span style="font-family:arial;">DECEMBER QUIZ: </span><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:arial;" >GOSPEL OF MARY, 1 & 2 TIMOTHY, TITUS, LUKE</span><span style="font-family:arial;">, AND </span><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:arial;" >ACTS</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">1) What issue does Peter's vision address prior to his visit to Cornelius in aesarea?</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. Gentiles receiving the word of God</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. The stoning of Stephen</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. The appointment of a new disciple</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. The preaching of the Gospel</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">2) Which of the following phrases continues the story beginning with the words: "And a woman in the city, who was a sinner..." (Luke 7:37)?</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. "began to bathe his feet with her tears."</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. "begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter."</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. "came up behind him and touched the fringe of his cloak."</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. "put in two small copper coins."</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">3) Which of the following concerns does 1 Timothy address at length?</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. Children</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. Drunkards</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. The rich</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. Widows</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">4) What is the conclusion of this retrospective view of Paul's career: "I have fought the good fight..."?</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. "and Christ has given me the victory."</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. "and my strength is made perfect in weakness."</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. "I have finished the race, I have kept the faith."</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. "and my head is bloody but unbowed."</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">5) What is the issue that prompts the gathering in Jerusalem in Acts 15?</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. the debate over circumcision and salvation</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. the rejection of Jewish law by Paul</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. the replacement of Judas</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. the way to preach the gospel in synagogues</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">6) According to the book of Acts, what sparks a riot in Ephesus?</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. The local Jews were offended by Paul's disregard for the law.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. The local silversmiths thought their business was in jeopardy.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. The local citizens claimed that Christians were advocating customs unlawful for Romans.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. The local priests of Zeus wanted to offer sacrifices to Barnabas and Paul.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">7) In Luke, who says, "Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles..."?</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. Anna</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. Elizabeth</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. Simeon</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. Zechariah</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">8) In the Gospel of Mary, why did Peter reject what Mary told them about Jesus?</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. Because her words were strange.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. Because she was a woman.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. Because she heard these things in private.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. All of the above.<br /><br /></span><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Short Answer:</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Why do scholars think the author of Luke is the same as the author of Acts?</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Is the book of Acts more like history or fiction or some combination? Why?</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">What do the pastorals (Titus, 1 & 2 Timothy) have to say about women and slaves?</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Do you think Paul wrote Titus and 1 & 2 Timothy? Why or why not?</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Longer Answers:</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Why do you suppose the Gospel of Mary was not included in the Bible? </span><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Do you think it could be a resource for the church as are those texts that are in the Bible? Why or why not?</span>John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249594162307875182.post-33796449554654651512008-11-25T18:00:00.000-08:002014-05-15T14:15:19.888-07:00December Quick Guide<span style="font-family: arial;">DECEMBER QUICK GUIDE TO THE BIBLE: </span><span style="font-family: arial; font-style: italic;">GOSPEL OF MARY, 1 & 2 TIMOTHY, TITUS, LUKE</span><span style="font-family: arial;">, AND </span><span style="font-family: arial; font-style: italic;">ACTS</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial; font-style: italic;">1 & 2 Timothy</span><span style="font-family: arial;"> and </span><span style="font-family: arial; font-style: italic;">Titus</span><span style="font-family: arial;"> are called the pastoral epistles. They are supposedly letters by Paul to his followers, Timothy and Titus. For various reasons, many scholars doubt these letters are in fact by Paul, but come from a much later time in the church. The concerns reflect matters of established communities.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial; font-style: italic;">I Timothy</span><span style="font-family: arial;">: This letter written to Timothy is advice from an old pro to a rookie in ministry. “Fight the good fight of the faith.” (6:12)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial; font-style: italic;">II Timothy</span><span style="font-family: arial;">: This is more personal than the first letter, and quite fatherly: “I remind you to rekindle the gift of God that is within you through the laying on of my hands...” (1:6)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial; font-style: italic;">Titus</span><span style="font-family: arial;">: This is the third of the pastoral letters (</span><span style="font-family: arial; font-style: italic;">I & II Tim</span><span style="font-family: arial;">. and </span><span style="font-family: arial; font-style: italic;">Titus</span><span style="font-family: arial;">). “Paul” writes to Titus, who is “my loyal child in the faith” and reminds him to do the job in Crete, which includes putting things in order there.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial;">The </span><a href="http://www.thenazareneway.com/the_gospel_of_mary_magdalene.htm" style="font-family: arial; font-style: italic;">Gospel of Mary Magdalene</a><span style="font-family: arial;"> is not found in the Bible. This text was discovered in the 19th century in Egypt. It is not a complete text. In this text, Mary is closer to Jesus than the other disciples. Jesus tells her things he does not tell the other disciples. When she reveals to them what she has seen and heard they do not believe her. It is intriguing to compare the </span><span style="font-family: arial; font-style: italic;">Gospel of Mary</span><span style="font-family: arial;"> with the pastoral epistles and other letters of the New Testament, especially in terms of attitudes toward women. In the </span><span style="font-family: arial; font-style: italic;">Gospel of Mary</span><span style="font-family: arial;">, Jesus says: “Do not lay down any rules beyond what I appointed you, and do not give a law like the lawgiver lest you be constrained by it.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial;">The </span><span style="font-family: arial; font-style: italic;">Gospel of Luke</span><span style="font-family: arial;"> and the </span><span style="font-family: arial; font-style: italic;">Acts of the Apostles</span><span style="font-family: arial;"> were written by the same author. It is helpful to read the two as one complete narrative. The </span><span style="font-family: arial; font-style: italic;">Gospel of Luke</span><span style="font-family: arial;"> takes Mark's Gospel (and possibly </span><span style="font-family: arial; font-style: italic;">Matthew's Gospel</span><span style="font-family: arial;"> or a source common to </span><span style="font-family: arial; font-style: italic;">Luke</span><span style="font-family: arial;"> and </span><span style="font-family: arial; font-style: italic;">Matthew</span><span style="font-family: arial;">) and embellishes it with memorable events and parables. </span><span style="font-family: arial; font-style: italic;">Luke</span><span style="font-family: arial;"> contains two of the most famous parables of Jesus that are not found in the other gospels: the </span><span style="font-family: arial; font-style: italic;">Parable of the Good Samaritan</span><span style="font-family: arial;"> and the </span><span style="font-family: arial; font-style: italic;">Parable of the Prodigal Son</span><span style="font-family: arial;">. It is </span><span style="font-family: arial; font-style: italic;">Luke's</span><span style="font-family: arial;"> gospel that forms the narrative basis for the church year from Advent to Ascension.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial; font-style: italic;">Acts</span><span style="font-family: arial;"> is possibly quite late, possibly 2nd century,and attempts to tell the history of Peter and Paul. While we often think of </span><span style="font-family: arial; font-style: italic;">Acts</span><span style="font-family: arial;"> as history, it is not history as we would describe it. It is more along the lines of historical romance or historical fiction. It paints a picture of how the author wants readers to see the development of the church. The main character in </span><span style="font-family: arial; font-style: italic;">Acts</span><span style="font-family: arial;"> is the Holy Spirit. In the tradition of travel narratives, </span><span style="font-family: arial; font-style: italic;">Acts</span><span style="font-family: arial;"> takes the reader on the adventure of the church in its earliest days. Much of the squabbles surrounded the role of the Gentiles in the church. Should Gentiles be required to become Jews before they could become Christians or could they simply bypass circumcision and the Law altogether? Arguably the author of </span><span style="font-family: arial; font-style: italic;">Luke-Acts</span><span style="font-family: arial;"> has done more to shape the church's understanding of itself than any other New Testament author. Historians are now deconstructing </span><span style="font-family: arial; font-style: italic;">Luke-Acts</span><span style="font-family: arial;"> and showing fairly convincingly that it is more fiction than history.</span>John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249594162307875182.post-60394206881003605682008-11-06T21:47:00.000-08:002008-11-06T21:52:14.641-08:00November Quick Guide<span style="font-family: arial;">NOVEMBER QUICK GUIDE TO THE BIBLE: THE GOSPEL OF JOHN,REVELATION, 1, 2, & 3 JOHN, COLOSSIANS, EPHESIANS, 1 & 2 PETER, HEBREWS, JAMES, JUDE</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">The Gospel of John is unique among the four gospels in the way the story of Jesus is presented. The sequence of events is different (the temple is cleansed early in his ministry as opposed to later, he goes to Jerusalem three different times as opposed to one, he carries his own cross, etc.) Jesus delivers long monologues and this language is mysterious. He says one thing and means another. Things appear to be working at two levels in John. The reader wonders about details and whether symbolic significance should be read into them. For example, should one make anything of the fact that they caught 153 fish?</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Revelation: This letter is of a genre called apocalyptic literature. Through symbolic language it is designed to inspire hope. Many symbols and references come from the Old Testament. It should not be taken as a prediction of the future but as a song of hope in God’s kingdom. “He will wipe every tear from their eyes” (21:4).</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">I John: This is an important letter about love for one another to show that we are God’s children: “God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them” (4:16).</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">II John: This a postcard warning about deceivers. Don’t welcome anyone who teaches the wrong stuff.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">III John: This letter is a bit more paranoid than the others; the author defends himself against some guy named Diotrephes. “Beloved do not imitate what is evil but imitate what is good.” (vs. 11)</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Ephesians: This letter describes the great unity we have in Christ who is the head of the Church who can bring Jew and Gentile together: “For he (Christ) is our peace; he has...broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us.” (2:14)</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Colossians: Paul has a concern that some goofy teachings have taken over “empty deceit” (2:8). He speaks of Christ as the head of the cosmos “the firstborn of all creation...in him all things hold together.” (1:15-17)</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">I Peter: This letter from Peter is encouragement in the face of persecution. “Live for the rest of your earthly life no longer by human desires but by the will of God.” (4:2)</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">II Peter: This letter is an attack on false teachers and a warning that Christ will come again for judgment. In the meantime: “Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” (3:18)</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Hebrews: This is a long sermon about how Christ is the perfect sacrifice done once and for all. Therefore, animal sacrifice in the temple is no longer needed. It contains a list of the heroes of faith. “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” (11:1)</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">James: This letter is about putting your works where your faith is. Not one for idle talk is James: “What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works?” (2:14)</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Jude: Bad apples have entered into the barrel. Don’t listen to them and reject the true faith. “Keep yourselves in the love of God” (vs. 21).</span>John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249594162307875182.post-43805113812351228982008-11-06T21:41:00.000-08:002008-11-06T21:46:53.047-08:00November Quiz<span style="font-family:arial;">NOVEMBER QUIZ - THE GOSPEL OF JOHN, REVELATION, 1, 2, & 3 JOHN,</span> <span style="font-family:arial;">COLOSSIANS, EPHESIANS, 1 & 2 PETER, HEBREWS, JAMES, JUDE</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">1. Which book contains the following quotation: "You do well if you really fulfill the royal law</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">according to the scripture...For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">accountable for all of it"?</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. Hebrews</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. James</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. 1 Peter</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. 2 John</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">2. In the book of Revelation, what causes John to weep bitterly?</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. Multitudes of people are left behind on the earth.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. No one can be found to break the seals on a scroll.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. The whole world follows the antichrist.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. None of the above.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">3. What does James say stains the whole body and is set on fire by hell?</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. pride</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. sexual passion</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. the love of money</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. the tongue</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">4. Which book contains the following: "Come to him, a living stone, though rejected by mortals yet chosen and precious in God's sight, and like living stones, let yourselves be built into a spiritual house..."?</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. James</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. 1 Peter</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. 2 Peter</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. Jude</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">5. Who asked, "How can anyone be born after having grown old? Can one enter a second time</span> <span style="font-family:arial;">into the mother's womb and be born?"</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. Nathanael</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. Nicodemus</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. Philip</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. Thomas</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">6. The example of Melchizedek is used by the author of Hebrews in discussing what?</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. Christian tithing</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. Jesus' death as a sacrifice</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. the messiahship of Jesus</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. the priesthood of Jesus</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">7. The letters of John contain all except which of the following?</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. "For the love of God is this, that we obey his commandments."</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. "Do not love the world or the things in the world."</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. "God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them."</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. "Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up."</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">8. Which of these themes may be said to be characteristic of Ephesians?</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. defense of Paul's authority</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. dissension in the church</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. explanation of the Second Coming</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. unity in Christ</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">9. What book contains the following quotation: "Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal</span> <span style="font-family:arial;">which comes upon you to prove you"?</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. Titus</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. Hebrews</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. 1 Peter</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. Jude</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Short Answer:</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">1) What are some of the differences between the way John tells his story and the way the story is told in the other three Gospels?</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">2) What metaphors does Jesus use to describe himself in John's Gospel? Which ones are most meaningful to you?</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Long Answer:</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">1) The Left Behind series by Tim LaHaye has sold millions of copies. It is uses the Book of Revelation as a code to understanding current events and predicting the future—the end of the world. Is LaHaye interpreting Revelation correctly? Why or why not?</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">2) There is apocalyptic imagery in the Bible. The Bible does on occasion seem to speak of an “end” of things, eternal life, heaven and hell, Jesus returning, a heavenly city, and so on. Is this imagery for you literal or poetic and what value might modern day folks take from it, if any?</span>John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249594162307875182.post-51691668365413808462008-09-23T14:03:00.000-07:002008-09-23T14:07:03.641-07:00October Quiz: Seven Authentic Letters of Paul<span style="font-family:arial;">October Quiz on the Seven Authentic Letters of Paul</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">1. "Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up in the clouds together with them to meet the Lord in the air; and so we will be with the Lord forever" occurs in which book?</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. 2 Corinthians</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. Galatians</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. Ephesians</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. 1 Thessalonians</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">2. In which letter does Paul say, "If anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ"?</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. Romans</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. 1 Corinthians</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. 2 Corinthians</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. Galatians</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">3. In Romans 9-11, as Paul discusses the fate of the Jewish people and their place in God's plan, which of the following statements does he make?</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. "Your house is left to you, desolate"</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. "All Israel will be saved"</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. "Jerusalem will be trampled on by the Gentiles"</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. None of the above</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">4. How does this quotation from Philippians end: "Work out your salvation with fear and trembling..."?</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. "for faith without works is dead."</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. "for it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for his good pleasure."</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. "for it is to such as these that the kingdom of heaven belongs."</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. "for the one who is righteous will live by faith."</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">5. How does Paul answer the question, "Should we continue in sin in order that grace may abound?"</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. "By no means! How can we who died to sin go on living in it?"</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. "You will fulfill the law of Christ."</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. "Sin boldly! Grace will abound."</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. "Love covers a multitude of sins."</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">6. Freedom in Christ is a major theme of which book?</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. 1 Corinthians</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. Galatians</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. Philippians</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. Colossians</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">7. Where was Paul when he wrote to Philemon?</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. in jail</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. in Nicopolis</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. on board a ship</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. In Crete</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">8. In which chapter does Paul emphasize the “election” of God’s people?</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. Romans 9</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. 1 Corinthians 15</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. Philippians 2</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. 1 Thessalonians 4</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">9. Which letter contains the following quotation: “…and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, ‘This is my body that is for you. Do this in remembrance of me’”?</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. 1 Corinthians</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. 2 Corinthians</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. Galatians</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. 1 Thessalonians</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">10. Which of these claims is found in 1 Corinthians?</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. “. . .work out your own salvation in fear and trembling. . . .”</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. “Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit. . . .”</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. “Three times I was shipwrecked. . . . “</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. “For through the law I died to the law, so that I might live to God.”</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">11. In which letter does Paul commend “Phoebe, a deacon of the church at Cenchreae” to his readers and describe a female co-worker named Junia as “prominent among the apostles”?</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. Philippians</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. 1 Corinthians</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. Galatians</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. Romans</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">12. ‘Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited’ is found in which book?</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. Romans</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. 2 Corinthians</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. Ephesians</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. Philippians</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">13. To which church did Paul write ". . . I would rather speak five words with my mind, in order to instruct others, than ten thousand words in a tongue?"</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. Corinth</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. Ephesus</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. Galatia</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. Jerusalem</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">e. Rome</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">14. Onesimus was a</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. disciple</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. magician</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. soldier</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. politician</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">e. slave</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">15. "If there is a physical body," Paul says, "there is also ___________."</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. a terrestrial body</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. a spiritual body</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. a perishable soul</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. an immortal soul</span><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;" >Short Answer:</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Fill in the blank from Paul’s letters:</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">“If I speak in the tongues of mortal and of angels, but do not have love, I am _______________</span><span style="font-family:arial;">_______________________________.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">“Bless those who ____________________.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">“If your enemies are hungry, __________________.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">“If your enemies are thirsty, _____________________.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Do not be overcome by evil, but _____________________.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;" >Longer Answer:</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Some have said that Romans is about faith and I Corinthians is about love. Which do you think is most important?</span><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Why are these seven letters considered the seven authentic letters of Paul? </span><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">What does Paul mean when he uses the phrase “In Christ?” </span><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Find examples in Paul’s seven letters of women in leadership.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></span>John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249594162307875182.post-17788997196812582512008-09-23T13:57:00.000-07:002008-09-23T14:01:15.673-07:00October Synopsis: Seven Authentic Letters of Paul<span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Bible Cover to Cover for October: The Seven Authentic Letters of Paul</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-style: italic;">1 Thessalonians, Galatians, Philemon, Philippians, 1 & 2 Corinthians,</span> and <span style="font-style: italic;">Romans</span></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">These are the seven letters that scholars all agree were written by Paul. Disputed letters (<span style="font-style: italic;">Ephesians, Colossians, 1 & 2 Timothy</span>, and <span style="font-style: italic;">Titus)</span> will be read later. We begin with Paul’s seven authentic letters (the earliest writings in the New Testament) rather than Acts which is written a half century after Paul. The Paul of <span style="font-style: italic;">Acts</span> is a legendary character that serves the purpose of the author of <span style="font-style: italic;">Acts</span>.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">In these seven letters written on the road to particular congregations, we get insight into the struggles and the convictions of the early Jesus movement as understood by Paul and his communities. Paul mythologizes Jesus for a Greek and Roman audience. There is little about the historical person of Jesus in Paul’s letters. Paul is mostly concerned about the death and resurrection of Christ (the Messiah) and what it means for his readers to live “in Christ.”</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">It is in these seven letters that we find the “real” Paul. One of the challenges is to seek to uncover what is coherent in Paul’s message and what is contingent upon circumstances. We find in the authentic Paul a radical message of personal and social liberation and egalitarianism between women and men, between slave and free, and between Jew and Greek.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-style: italic;">I Thessalonians</span>: This is Paul’s first letter and the oldest writing in the New Testament. There was concern that Christ had not returned. Paul reassures them that Christ will come again and the dead will be raised. “The day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.” (5:2)</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-style: italic;">I Corinthians</span> is written for the church that has lost its center in Christ. Fighting, division, competition, and self-aggrandizement rule the day for the Corinthians and Paul teaches them the meaning of community, of love, and of authentic spiritual maturity. Chapter 13 contains some of the most beautiful poetry in scripture. That is why you hear it during weddings.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-style: italic;">II Corinthians</span>: Relations between Paul and the people at Corinth had deteriorated. This letter reveals the hurt and frustration when people of faith have conflicts that cannot seem to be resolved. Paul tries to walk that difficult line of seeking reconciliation but needing to defend his ministry. “Make room in your hearts for us...” (7:2)</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Philemon</span>: Paul writes to Philemon who is the owner of a slave, Onesimus. Paul admonishes Philemon to grant Onesimus his freedom and to take him back not as a slave but as a brother.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Galatians</span>: The Galatians have reverted back to their old ways by putting the demands of the law onto Christians. Galatians is an important letter which tells of the universal implications of the Christian faith. “You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you!” (3:1)</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Philippians</span>: Paul writes this letter from prison and it is a powerful letter of faith and joy amidst struggle. It is a letter of confidence in Christ’s presence. “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice!” (4:4)</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Romans</span> is Paul's theological summa.<span style="font-style: italic;"> Romans</span> was the work that changed Martin Luther and inspired him to reform the church. "We are justified by grace through faith." Paul wrestles with the same questions we do today. How good do I have to be? What is the difference between the letter and the spirit of the law? Why do I keep doing the bad things I detest?<br /><br /><br /></span></span>John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249594162307875182.post-14760094392851156982008-09-02T16:10:00.000-07:002008-09-02T17:46:45.761-07:00September Quick Guide: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and Thomas<span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-family:arial;">For the period September 1 through September 30, read <span style="font-style: italic;">Matthew, Mark, Luke,</span> and <span style="font-style: italic;">Thomas</span>.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">The word "gospel" means good news. It comes from the Greek word euangelion where we get the words evangel, evangelist, and evangelism. Traditionally, "gospel" was a secular word. Governors would begin public announcements about military victories or state celebrations (such as Caesar's birthday) with the phrase "Good News!" Using this format, Mark's Gospel begins with a different kind of good news. The "good news of Jesus Christ the Son of God." (Mark 1:1) </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Matthew, Mark, and Luke are called the synoptic gospels. Syn (similar) Optic (eye). These three proclamations about Jesus are similar in both form or narrative flow and in content. In contrast, the Gospel of John is quite different from Matthew, Mark and Luke both in the kinds of stories told about Jesus and the way in which they are framed. Each work brings its own interpretation about the significance of Jesus. That is why it is good as we read them to respect each author's integrity rather than to try to mix all the gospels into one life of Jesus. These gospels are proclamations about Jesus' significance rather than biographies of his life. John 20:30-31 explains: "Now Jesus did may other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name." </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Most scholars agree that Mark is the first gospel written around 70 A.D. at the time of the Jewish War with the Romans and the destruction of the temple about 40 years after Jesus. The stories about Jesus reflect that contemporary situation. Luke and Matthew followed Mark, used his narrative flow, and added material of their own, completing their works ten to fifteen years later. The author of Luke also wrote Acts so these works should be read and interpreted as one book. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">The Gospel of Thomas is a sayings gospel. It was found in 1945 in the collection at Nag Hammadi. Some of the Gospel of Thomas is similar to what is found in the synoptic gospels. Some is quite different. Thomas may have preserved some of the earliest layers of the Jesus sayings tradition. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Who was Jesus? Was he a real person? Did he even exist? We know next to nothing about Jesus outside what the Bible says about him. The Gospels are not reliable as historical biographies. They are theological proclamations. One can find antecedents to nearly all of the stories about Jesus in earlier literature. Miracles such as virgin birth, resurrection, walking on water, turning water into wine, healing people of illness, and ascending to heaven are common themes attributed to divine figures. Even many of the sayings and parables of Jesus are likely to have originated with philosophers, prophets, and sages before him. It is difficult if not impossible to determine what the historical person was like, even if there was one. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">There are different ways to read these Gospels. One way is to read them as sources for information about the historical Jesus. In this way of reading we try to distinguish the mythological “gloss” from the historical person. Historical Jesus scholars such as the Jesus Seminar have developed methodology to do this. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Another way is to read each gospel as a story of Jesus in its own right. In this way of reading, we don't worry about contradictions of fact (who was actually at the tomb, etc.); rather, we try to determine who Mark's Jesus is, and how he compares to Luke's Jesus and Matthew's Jesus. In this way of reading, one brackets the questions regarding the historical person and steps into the story with all of its myth, metaphor, and magic. Then, the most important question will be from Jesus to you: "Who do you say that I am?" </span></span>John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249594162307875182.post-60195700032017890482008-09-02T16:03:00.000-07:002008-09-02T16:19:21.491-07:00September Quiz: Matthew, Mark, Luke, Thomas<span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-family:arial;">1. The Gospel writers attempted to</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. write objective biographies of Jesus designed to enable readers to reconstruct the life of Jesus</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. to interpret Jesus theologically for the communities they served</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">2. In studies about Jesus, scholars often distinguish between the Christ of faith and the Jesus of history. Which of the following is the best definition of the ‘Christ of faith’?</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. The Christ of faith is Jesus as proclaimed by the Christian community.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. The Christ of faith is the very limited picture of Jesus that emerges when we use only data </span><span style="font-family:arial;">which can be ‘proven’ by using the historical method.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. The Christ of faith is the real Jesus as we would see him if we could go back in time and </span><span style="font-family:arial;">listen to him teaching in Galilee.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">3. Large amounts of information about Jesus may be found in non-Christian sources such as Josephus and Tacitus. In fact, we know almost as much about Jesus from these sources as from the Christian Gospels.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. True</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. False</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">4. The criterion of dissimilarity asserts that</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. if an historical statement can be read as challenging the goals of the document in which it </span><span style="font-family:arial;">occurs or the goals of the community which preserved that document, then it is likely to be true.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. if an historical statement can be read as challenging the goals of the document in which it </span><span style="font-family:arial;">occurs or the goals of the community which preserved that document, then it is likely to be false.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. if an historical statement is not similar to other statements made in the same document, then it is probably false.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">5. The criterion of multiple attestation asserts that</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. if an historical statement is supported by more than one source, it is probably true</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">regardless of what the literary relationship of those sources might be.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. if an historical statement is supported by more than one source, and if the relevant sources could not be dependent upon one another, then the statement is probably true.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. if an historical statement is supported by more than one source, the sources must be related to one another if the statement is true</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">6. The Jesus Seminar asserts that Jesus</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. preached a highly apocalyptic message, expecting the arrival of the Kingdom of God and </span><span style="font-family:arial;">the end of natural history shortly after his death.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. preached a message that had little to do with popular eschatology.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">7. Jesus grew up in __________.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. Jerusalem</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. Bethlehem</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. Capernaum</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. Nazareth</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">8. Jesus was born sometime between</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. 40 and 27 BCE</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. 6 and 4 BCE</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. 1 and 12 CE</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. 27 and 30 CE</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">9. According to the canonical Gospels Jesus was born in __________.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. Jerusalem</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. Bethlehem</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. Capernaum</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. Nazareth</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">10. Jesus was crucified in __________.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. Jerusalem</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. Bethlehem</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. Capernaum</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. Nazareth</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">11. Which of the following is true about the New Testament claim that Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist?</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. While the New Testament reports this event, we have no way to prove whether it actually </span><span style="font-family:arial;">happened or not. It must be accepted as a matter of faith.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. Most historians would say that we have good evidence for this event. We can demonstrate </span><span style="font-family:arial;">that it is extremely likely that Jesus was actually baptized by John.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">12. During Jesus’ public ministry</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. he attracted large crowds of both supporters and opponents.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. he probably did not attract much attention. The Christian movement took on great force </span><span style="font-family:arial;">only after Jesus’ death.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. he attracted large crowds, but the crowds virtually always opposed Jesus. He had few </span><span style="font-family:arial;">supporters.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d. he attracted large crowds of supporters. Strong popular opposition to his message arose </span><span style="font-family:arial;">only after his death.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">13. Jesus’ public ministry lasted</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. between one and three years</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. about six months</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. between five and ten years</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">14. Who actually carried out the crucifixion of Jesus?</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">a. a group of Roman soldiers</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b. an angry mob, without the help of the Romans</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c. the Jewish temple leadership</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Question Source:</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Dr. Michael Palmer</span><br /><a href="http://www.greek-language.com/bible"><span style="font-family:arial;">www.greek-language.com/bible</span></a><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Shorter Answer:</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Of all Jesus' teachings, parables, or sayings, name one (or two or three if you can't decide on one) that is the most important for us as human beings to internalize? Why?</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">What title does Jesus use for himself more than any other? What do you think it means?</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Matthew and Luke both include birth narratives. What are the differences between the two narratives? What does each author want us to know about the kind of person Jesus will be and the work Jesus will do through the device of the birth narrative?</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Why was Jesus executed? What did it mean for his followers to claim he was “Resurrected”? </span><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Longer Answer:</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Imagine Jesus as a real person. Without using "theological jargon" describe in two or three paragraphs what kind of person Jesus is. Think in terms of personality, values, dreams, attitudes, and convictions. Don't worry about being "right or wrong" or orthodox or whatever; use your imagination and heart! </span></span>John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249594162307875182.post-21708623761082004382008-08-12T11:34:00.000-07:002008-08-12T23:35:59.176-07:00August Quick Guide: Apocrypha/Deuterocanon<span style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><em>1, 2, 3, 4 Maccabees, 1 & 2 Esdras, The Prayer of Manasseh, Psalm 151<br /></em><br />These are important works that tell of the period in which Hellenization (Greek culture and language) dominated the known world. These works describe the various responses to this influence. Greek thought and culture was both welcomed and feared. It also tells of persecution by Greek rulers and Jewish response. These works cover the period from the death of Alexander the Great in the 3rd century BCE to the first century CE.<br /><br /><em>1 Maccabees</em> is history that recounts the origins of the Hasmonean Dynasty. It begins with the death of Alexander the Great and the rise to power of the Seleucid King, Antiochus IV Epiphanes. Here you will discover the origins of Hanakkuh.<br /><br /><em>2 Maccabees</em> tells the same history of the first eight chapters of <em>1 Maccabees</em> with a unique literary style. It is like a blog versus a news story! The martyrdom of the seven brothers is important for later Christian developments regarding resurrection.<br /><br /><em>1 Esdras</em> reproduces <em>2 Chronicles</em> 35:1-36:23, <em>Ezra</em>, and <em>Nehemiah</em> 7:38-8:12. If you have already read the canonical works, you might skim <em>1 Esdras</em> and notice differences. Read 3:1-5:6 as this passage is unique to <em>1 Esdras</em>.<br /><br /><em>The Prayer of Manasseh</em> is a touching prayer of confession by the “wicked” king Manasseh (2 Kings 21:1-18). It is a prayer of hope that even the most evil among us are capable of redemption. <br /><br /><em>Psalm</em> 151. And you thought there were only 150 Psalms! This one isn’t too long. It is a psalm of David.<br /><br /><em>3 Maccabees</em> is not about the Maccabees at all. It is about another bad guy, King Ptolemy IV Philopator (221-203 BCE) and the struggle that Jews living in Egypt had with him. <br /><br /><em>2 Esdras</em> is the only apocalypse in the Apocrypha. It reads like the book of <em>Revelation</em> and chapter 7-13 of <em>Daniel</em>. A heavy dose of this will give you bad dreams. Apocalyptic literature told of troubles and of future hope of God’s victory through complex symbols revealed in dreams. The word apocalypse means revelation.<br /><br /><em>4 Maccabees</em> is a philosophical treatise written around the time of Jesus. It is an interpretation of Judaism using Greek philosophy.<br /></span></span><br /><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:130%;" ></span><br /><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:130%;" ></span>John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249594162307875182.post-15763149981085536292008-08-12T11:31:00.000-07:002008-08-12T23:36:17.943-07:00August Quiz: Apocrypha/Deuterocanon<span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:130%;" >1) The Septuagint was<br />a) a Hebrew translation of the Latin Bible<br />b) a Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible<br />c) a Latin translation of the Greek Bible<br /><br />2) The Hellenistic ruler who tried to destroy Judaism in the second century BCE by persecuting Jews was<br />a) Ptolemy I<br />b) Seleucus II<br />c) Alexander of Macedonia<br />d) Antiochus IV<br /><br />3) When did the Seleucid persecutions of the Jews begin?<br />a) 70 CE<br />b) 167 BCE<br />c) 538 BCE<br />d) 333 BCE<br />e) 587 BCE<br /><br />4) Who was Mattathias?<br />a) The Hasmonean ruler who forced the Syrians to sign a treaty of non-aggression.<br />b) The priest of Modein who started the Maccabean Revolt.<br />c) A prominent resident of Jerusalem, in the Persian province of Yehud at the time Alexander imposed Greek rule there.<br /><br />5) The Hasmonean Period was<br />a) a time when Israel was dominated by Rome.<br />b) a time of peace, when Israel was free from external pressures and able to pursue its own interests.<br />c) a time of independence for Israel, but not a time of peace.<br /><br />6) The Maccabean Revolt began when<br />a) The Seleucid kingdom took Israel away from the Ptolemaic kingdom.<br />b) Mattathias, the priest in the small Judean village of Modein, refused to perform a sacrifice to the Greek god Zeus.<br />c) Judas Maccabeus marched into Jerusalem and rededicated the temple there to the worship of Yahweh.<br /><br />7) Who led the Jewish forces in the recapture of Jerusalem in 164 BCE?<br />a) Judas Maccabeus<br />b) Antiochus IV<br />c) Simon<br />d) Alexander<br /><br />8) Which of the following is not one of the typical characteristics of apocalyptic writing?<br />a) violence<br />b) tolerance<br />c) predestination<br />d) exclusivism<br />e) dualism<br /><br />9) The people of Israel lost their independence at the end of the Hasmonean Period. What foreign power controlled Israel after that point?<br />a) The Greeks<br />b) The Romans<br />c) The Persians<br /><br />10) Who was installed as ruler of the Jews when the last Hasmonean ruler died?<br />a) Pontius Pilate<br />b) Herod the Great<br />c) Herod Antipas<br /><br />11) When were the oldest of the Dead Sea Scrolls produced?<br />a) Between 100 and 223 CE.<br />b) Between 250 BCE and 68 CE.<br />c) Between 500 and 415 BCE<br /><br />12) A document that is pseudonymous is one that<br />a) now has a title other than the one originally assigned to the document<br />b) was written by a community of editors rather than a single author<br />c) was composed by an unknown writer in the name of a famous person<br /><br />13) A canon is<br />a) the official list of books that a religious community accepts as authentic and binding<br />b) a list of books that are rejected by a religious community as unfit for divine instruction<br />c) an authoritative group of clergy who must decide on such issues as which books are to be read by a religious community<br /><br />14) The term Tanak refers to the same collection of documents as which of the following?<br />a) The Septuagint<br />b) A Catholic Old Testament<br />c) The Hebrew Bible<br /><br />15) Which of the following is NOT one of the major sections of the Tanak?<br />a) Kethuvim (Writings)<br />b) Neviim (Prophets)<br />c) Torah (Teaching, Law, Instruction)<br />d) Apocrypha (Hidden)<br /><br />16) The Tanak ends with<br />a) the book of Malachi<br />b) the books of Chronicles<br />c) the book of Psalms<br /><br />17) The Old Testament ends with<br />a) the book of Malachi<br />b) the books of Chronicles<br />c) the book of Psalms</span><br /><span style="font-family:Arial;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Arial;"></span>John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249594162307875182.post-75599788563791251192008-06-26T15:07:00.000-07:002008-06-26T15:23:01.312-07:00July Quiz: Apocrypha or Deuterocanon<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p>1.<span style=""> </span>What does the term "Apocrypha" mean?<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p><span style=""> </span>a) False Inscription<br /><span style=""> </span>b) Inspired<br /><span style=""> </span>c) Extraneous<br /><span style=""> </span>d) Hidden<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p><br />2.<span style=""> </span>The term deuterocanonical means<span style=""> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style=""> </span>a)<span style=""> </span>having to do with the second coming of Jesus<br /><span style=""> </span>b)<span style=""> </span>hidden; not to be read<br /><span style=""> </span>c)<span style=""> </span>belonging to a second canon</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p><br /></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">3. <span style=""> </span>What did Tobiah use to keep the demon from the bridal chamber when he married Sarah?<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p><span style=""> </span>a)<span style=""> </span>A sheep's gall bladder<br />b)<span style=""> </span>Warm bird droppings<br /><span style=""> </span>c)<span style=""> </span>A magical incantation<br /><span style=""> </span>d)<span style=""> </span>A fish's heart and liver</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">4. Who was pulled by the hair of his head by God and taken from Judea to Babylon to give Daniel lunch when Daniel was in the lion's den?</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-family:arial;">a) Zerubabbel</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">b) Jeremiah</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">c) Habakkuk</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">d) Elijah</span></span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">5. Why did Tobit send his son Tobia to Media?<o:p><br /></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style=""> </span>a)<span style=""> </span>To claim a fortune deposited there<br /><span style=""> </span>b)<span style=""> </span>To seek out and marry Sarah<br /><span style=""> </span>c)<span style=""> </span>To find a cure for his blindness<br /><span style=""> </span>d)<span style=""> </span>To avoid death at the hands of Sennacherib<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p><br /></o:p>6. How did Judith assassinate Holofernes?<br /><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style=""> </span>a)<span style=""> </span>She stabbed him during intercourse<br /><span style=""> </span>b)<span style=""> </span>She beheaded him while he was drunk<br /><span style=""> </span>c)<span style=""> </span>She prayed to God and he was miraculously killed<br /><span style=""> </span>d)<span style=""> </span>She drove a tent peg through his chest</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">7. Two Jewish elders, out of lust for this woman, tell her to have sex with them or risk being accused of committing adultery with a young man.<br /><o:p></o:p><br /><span style=""> </span>a)<span style=""> </span>Susanna<br /><span style=""> </span>b)<span style=""> </span>Esther<br /><span style=""> </span>c)<span style=""> </span>Judith<br /><span style=""> </span>d)<span style=""> </span>Baruch</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">8. Verses from this passage are used in the liturgy of the Episcopal Church of the <st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">U.S.A.</st1:country-region></st1:place>, as part of the "Rite One Morning Prayer."<br /><o:p></o:p><br /><span style=""> </span>a)<span style=""> </span>Song of the Three Young Men<br /><span style=""> </span>b)<span style=""> </span>Susanna<br /><span style=""> </span>c)<span style=""> </span>Bel and the Dragon<br /><span style=""> </span>d)<span style=""> </span>Wisdom</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">9. In the additional parts of Esther, what character has a dream vision?<br /><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style=""> </span>a)<span style=""> </span>Esther<br /><span style=""> </span>b)<span style=""> </span>Mordecai<br /><span style=""> </span>c)<span style=""> </span>Vashiti<br /><span style=""> </span>d)<span style=""> </span>Haman<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p><br />10. The Wisdom of Solomon is the only book of the Roman Catholic Old Testament that professes a belief that would have enormous importance in the history of the Christian West, namely,<br /><o:p></o:p><br /><span style=""> </span>a) Explicit monotheism.<br /><span style=""> </span>b) A spiritual interpretation of the messianic hope.<br /><span style=""> </span>c) The possibility of vicarious suffering.<br /><span style=""> </span>d) The immortality of the soul.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">11. What Deuterocanonical book is ascribed to the secretary of the prophet Jeremiah?<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style=""> </span>a) Baruch<br /><span style=""> </span>b) Tobit<br /><span style=""> </span>c)<span style=""> </span>Sirach<br /><span style=""> </span>d)<span style=""> </span>Judith<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p><br />12.<span style=""> </span>Hellenistic culture</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style=""> </span>a)<span style=""> </span>was the culture of classical <st1:country-region st="on">Greece</st1:country-region> before the conquests that brought Greek language and customs to <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Israel</st1:place></st1:country-region>.<br /><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span>b) was the culture of Mesopotamia and <st1:place st="on">Canaan</st1:place> in the centuries immediately before Greek culture was introduced there.<br /><span style=""> </span>c) resulted from the mixture of classical Greek civilization with the older cultures of the <st1:place st="on">Near East</st1:place>.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p></o:p><br />13.<span style=""> </span>Who was the conqueror who took Greek language, art, literature, philosophy, and social customs from <st1:country-region st="on">Greece</st1:country-region> to the millions of people living in <st1:country-region st="on">Egypt</st1:country-region>, <st1:city st="on">Judea</st1:city>, <st1:country-region st="on">Afghanistan</st1:country-region>, and all the way to western <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">India</st1:place></st1:country-region>?<br /><br />a) Ashurbanipal III<br /><span style=""> </span> b) Cyrus of <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Persia</st1:place></st1:country-region><br /><span style=""> </span> c) Alexander the Great</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p></o:p><br />14. <span style=""> </span>General consensus regarding which books belong in the Hebrew Bible was reached at approximately<br /><o:p></o:p><br /> a) The time of Ezra, 400 B.C.E.<br /> b) The time of the Maccabees, the second century B.C.E.<br /> c) The end of the first century C.E.<br /> d) The early Middle Ages.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p><br />15.<span style=""> </span>The term diaspora refers to</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">a)<span style=""> </span>a form of dress in ancient <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Israel</st1:place></st1:country-region><br />b)<span style=""> </span>the war for independence from Seleucid rule<br />c)<span style=""> </span>the distribution of Jews outside their Palestinian homeland<br /><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">Short Answer:<span style=""> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">1. According to Ben Sira, the chief function of a scribe is to ___________________.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">2. If the Wisdom of Solomon exhibits respect for philosophy, it has scathing contempt for the Egyptians because of their ____________.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" face="arial"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p><br />Longer Answer:</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">1. What is implied when we call the Bible “Sacred Scripture”?<o:p><br /></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">2. What does it mean to speak of the “canon” of the Bible?<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:130%;" ><span style=""><o:p>3</o:p>. What enduring values can we hope to find in the Bible?</span></span><span style="font-size:10;"><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249594162307875182.post-40512687998907069612008-06-26T15:02:00.000-07:002008-06-26T15:04:57.934-07:00July Quick Guide: Apocryphal/Deuterocanonical Literature (Part 1)<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><i style="">Tobit, Judith, Esther (Greek), The Wisdom of Solomon, Sirach, Baruch,<br />The Letter of Jeremiah, Azariah and the Three Jews, Susanna<o:p></o:p></i></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">These books did not make the canon of the Protestant Bible, but they are found in the sacred canons of other Christian traditions.<span style=""> </span>These are the writings of Jewish people <span style=""> </span>between the third century BCE and the first century CE.<span style=""> </span>Many of these texts were written in Greek, some in Aramaic or Hebrew.<span style=""> </span>Many respond to the Hellenization of the region since the conquest of Alexander the Great.<span style=""> </span>While some of the writings incorporate Greek thought, much of it resists Hellenization and prizes faithful Jewish resistance.<span style=""> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">The apocrypha includes some fun stories in the genre of historical romances:</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><i style="">Tobit</i> is a found in the Roman Catholic canon.<span style=""> </span>It is a fictional story that praises faithfulness and courage.<span style=""> </span><i style="">Tobit</i> gives us the concept of the guardian angel and provides a reason why young men may be frightened to death on their wedding night.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><i style="">Judith</i> is fiction in the form of history.<span style=""> </span>Lest anyone doubt that women should be in combat, here is a how a brave, faithful, woman gets ahead.<span style=""> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">In the Greek version of the <i style="">Book of Daniel</i> are three more stories not found in the Hebrew text.<span style=""> </span>They are <i style="">Azariah and the The Three Jews</i>, <i style="">Susanna</i>, and <i style="">Bel and the Dragon</i>.<span style=""> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><i style="">1)</i><span style=""> </span><i style="">The Prayer of Azariah and the Song of the Three Jews</i> is what the three men pray to the Lord when they were tossed into the fiery furnace.<span style=""> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><i style="">2) Susanna</i> is the story of a woman who is wrongly accused.<span style=""> </span>Thankfully Daniel comes to her rescue--just like Matlock.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">3) <i style="">Bel and the Dragon</i> tells the story of how Daniel outwits the religious phonies, kills a dragon, and survives six days in a lion’s den.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">The Greek version of <i style="">Esther</i> is the same story as the canonical Esther with some additions.<span style=""> </span>These additions are pious, in that they contain explicit references to God not found in the Hebrew text.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">In addition to fun stories, the Apocrypha contains wisdom literature:</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">The <i style="">Wisdom of Solomon</i> and <i style="">Ecclesiasticus</i> or <i style="">The Wisdom of Jesus Son of Sirach</i> is skillful literature.<span style=""> </span>It is a blending of Greek and Hebrew thought.<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span>These two works as well as <i style="">2 Maccabbees 6-7</i> had a great influence on the theology of the early Christian church, including the doctrine of the immortality of the soul.<span style=""> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><i style="">Baruch</i>, named for the scribe of Jeremiah is really a praise for Wisdom and for <st1:country-region st="on">Israel</st1:country-region>:<span style=""> </span>“The woods and every fragrant tree have shaded <st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">Israel</st1:country-region></st1:place> at God’s command.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><i style="">The Letter of Jeremiah </i>was supposedly written by Jeremiah to the captives in <st1:place st="on"><st1:city st="on">Babylon</st1:city></st1:place>.<span style=""> </span>It is really a scathing attack on non-Jews:<span style=""> </span>“Like a scarecrow in a cucumber bed, which guards nothing, so are their gods of wood, overlaid with gold and silver.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249594162307875182.post-48019935213061472262008-05-18T20:38:00.000-07:002008-05-18T20:39:25.088-07:00The Hebrew Prophets: The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly<span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 85%;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;" align="center"><span style="font-size: 130%;"><i style="">The Hebrew Prophets:<span style=""> </span>The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly</i><br />John Shuck</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;" align="center"><span style="font-size: 130%;">First Presbyterian Church<br /><st1:place st="on"><st1:city st="on">Elizabethton</st1:city>, <st1:state st="on">Tennessee</st1:state></st1:place><br />April 27<sup>th</sup>, 2008</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;"><o:p> </o:p><br /></span><span style="font-style: italic; font-size: 130%;">Selected </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><st1:city style="font-style: italic;" st="on"><st1:place st="on">Readings</st1:place></st1:city></span><span style="font-style: italic; font-size: 130%;"> from the Minor Prophets</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><span style="font-style: italic;"> </span> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;"><o:p> </o:p><br /><b style="">The Good:</b></span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><i style="">The time is surely coming, says the Lord, when the one who plows shall overtake the one who reaps, and treader of grapes the one who sows the seed; the mountains shall drip sweet wine, and all the hills shall flow with it.<span style=""> </span>I will restore the fortunes of my people <st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">Israel</st1:country-region></st1:place>, and they shall rebuild the ruined cities and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and drink their wine, and they shall make gardens and eat their fruit.<span style=""> </span>--Amos 9:13-14<o:p></o:p></i></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;"><o:p> </o:p><br /><b style="">The Bad:</b></span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><i style="">I will utterly sweep away everything from the face of the earth, says the Lord.<span style=""> </span>I will sweep away the birds of the air and the fish of the sea.<span style=""> </span>I will make the wicked stumble.<span style=""> </span>I will cut off humanity from the face of the earth, says the Lord.<br />--Zephaniah 1:2-3<o:p></o:p></i></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;"><o:p> </o:p><br /><b style="">The Ugly:</b></span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><i style="">I am against you, says the Lord of hosts, and will lift up your skirts over your face; and I will let nations look on your nakedness and kingdoms on your shame.<span style=""> </span>I will throw filth at you and treat you with contempt, and make you a spectacle.<span style=""> </span><br />--Nahum 3:5-6<o:p></o:p></i></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;"><o:p> </o:p><br />Today marks the end of our tour through the Hebrew prophets.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">In our journey through the Bible we have finished the Torah (Genesis through Deuteronomy), the Former Prophets (Joshua, Judges, Samuel and Kings), and the Latter Prophets, which is divided into the Major Prophets (Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel), and the Minor Prophets (Hosea through Malachi).</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><br /><o:p></o:p><br />Next month we begin the Writings.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">We will read the poetic literature first, Job, Psalms, and Proverbs.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Then for June, we will read The Five Scrolls:</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">(Song of Songs, Ruth, Lamentations, Ecclesiastes, and Esther).</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">We will also read the Post-Exilic Writings: (Daniel, Ezra, Nehemiah, 1 & 2 Chronicles).</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">And by the end of June we will have completed the Hebrew Scriptures which Christians call the Old Testament.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">We are reading them, however, in the order of the Hebrew tradition rather than the Christian tradition.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;">The poet Robert Frost, in one of his poems wrote that he had a lover’s quarrel with the world.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">In his 1942 poem “The Lesson for Today,” a long philosophical poem, we find this stanza:<br /><o:p></o:p><br /><i style="">And were an epitaph to be my story<br />I'd have a short one ready for my own.<br />I would have written of me on my stone:<br />I had a lover's quarrel with the world</i>.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;"><o:p></o:p>You will find on Robert Frost’s tombstone in his resting place in <st1:state st="on"><st1:place st="on">Vermont</st1:place></st1:state>, that sentence:</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">“I had a lover’s quarrel with the world.”</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">I took a photograph of it when I visited there a few years ago.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;">On my tombstone should be written, “I had a lover’s quarrel with the Bible.”</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">It truly is a lover’s quarrel.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">I have been marinated in it since I was a child.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">I learned critical methods, even a dabbling in its original languages.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">I have argued with it, dismissed it, embraced it again, cursed those who misuse it, embarrassed myself in my misuse of it, and here I am again encouraging you to read it.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Perhaps I want you to share my pain.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">The Bible won’t go away.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">I cannot seem to write it off.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Its narrative continues to mess with my head and heart.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;">I still want to trust that what it says is true—we matter, something bigger than us cares, and in the end we experience Resurrection and a shining city.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;">Religious scholar Bart Ehrman, who teaches at the <st1:placetype st="on">University</st1:placetype> of <st1:placename st="on">North Carolina</st1:placename>—<st1:place st="on">Chapel Hill</st1:place>, just published a book in 2008:</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Gods-Problem-Answer-Important-Question-Why/dp/0061173975?tag=dogpile-20"><i style="">God’s Problem:<span style=""> </span>How the Bible Fails to Answer Our Most Important Question--Why We Suffer</i></a>.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;">I think Professor Ehrman has a lover’s quarrel with the Bible, too.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">I resonate with what he wrote on page 17:</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;"><i style="">It is important, then, to see what the Bible actually says, and not to pretend it doesn’t say something that happens to contradict one’s own particular point of view. But whatever the Bible says needs to be evaluated. This is not a matter of setting oneself up as God, dictating what is and what is not divine truth. It is a matter of using our intelligence to assess the merit of what the biblical authors say…(p. 17)<o:p></o:p></i></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;">That is true enough.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Yet the Bible has power over us at that exact point.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">If we do “assess the merit of what the biblical authors say” we are breaking a taboo.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">It is that very assessment that is considered to be the slandering of the sacred.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">This taboo is not just for fundamentalists.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Biblical scholars across the spectrum all have the desire to bring the Bible to their side.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">We really have a hard time finally saying, for example, “Yes, the Apostle Paul was probably homophobic, but we don’t have to be.”</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;">Folks who have no lover’s quarrel with the Bible have no difficulty saying that.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">The Bible is as foreign to them as tales of the Norse god, Odin.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">But for those of us who do trust the Bible as a sacred text, we have a problem.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Can it be true if we have the freedom to assess its truth claims?</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Is it true if we conclude that some of it is not true?</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><br /><br />I am not speaking about whether or not an event in the Bible happened or not, I am talking about the big ticket questions, such as, “If God loves us, why do we suffer?”</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">This is the question Bart Ehrman addresses in his recent book.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;">Ehrman believes that that question is the foundational question of the Bible.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Ehrman writes that it is not only a foundational question for the Bible but for most if not all religions.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">It is an existential question with which we live.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;">Why do we suffer?</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">The reason we ask it is in order to then ask:</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">How can we end suffering, or at least reduce it, or at even be at peace with it?</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">I bring up Ehrman’s book because he begins with the prophets and how they answered that question.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;">There are a number of different ways the biblical writers answered that question.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">The dominant answer, the classic answer, is that suffering is God’s punishment for disobedience.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">The prophets also assert that some suffering is caused by human beings who inflict pain on others.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">The prophet Amos accused the rich of selling the poor for a pair of shoes.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Their suffering was the result of the greed of the rich.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;">One explanation for human suffering is true enough:</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">we bring it on others and ourselves by making selfish and cruel choices.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Why do people suffer from grinding poverty, war, and sickness.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Some of it can be explained by neglect, cruelty and ignorance.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Those who see human suffering in that way, seek to eliminate it or alleviate it.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">There is suffering that we can do something about.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;">This is why Amos, of all the prophets, resonates so much with those who work for social justice.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">The hope is we can do something about it, if we care enough to act.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Amos, in that sense, is quite modern.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;">That explanation doesn’t account for all suffering, though.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">It doesn’t account for natural disasters, birth defects, disease, pain in childbirth, and death itself.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">As much as we might enjoy blaming politicians and leaders for our suffering, we cannot concede to them that much power.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;">The classic explanation for suffering from the Hebrew prophets was that suffering was inflicted upon them as punishment for disobedience to YHWH.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">The crisis was this:</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">YHWH chose us and made a covenant with us.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Why then are we in such misery?</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Why are we being overthrown by our adversaries?</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Why do we die from famine and drought?</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Why do mothers weep for their children and refuse to be comforted?</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Why doesn’t YHWH answer our cries for help?</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;">The answer from the prophets is that this suffering is not the result of indifferent weather patterns, nor is it the result of the Babylonian or Assyrian Empires’ quests for power.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">This suffering is YHWH’s way of communicating.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">You are suffering because you have disobeyed and you need to repent.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">When you do repent, YHWH will restore you.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;">Job didn’t buy it.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Job rejects the classic answer.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Here is a righteous person who suffers.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">There are two answers in Job.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">The first is that suffering is none of his business.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">YHWH speaks to him finally from the whirlwind and gives no answer.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">The second answer from the prologue and epilogue that the reader knows, but the character Job does not, is that YHWH was playing games with him.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">YHWH made a bet with the Adversary regarding how much suffering could be inflicted upon poor old Job, before he would break his covenant with YHWH.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Suffering in this case is a test.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Although, one might legitimately ask, for what purpose?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;">The answer from Ecclesiastes is “All is vanity and chasing after the wind.”</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">The good suffer and wicked prosper, just the make the best of it.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Ecclesiastes also resonates with our modern view on things.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;">In the saga of Joseph, which Ehrman points out, is the same theme of the story of Jesus, God uses suffering for redemption.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">In this case suffering is not caused by God but used by God to achieve a greater good.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">The New Testament does not really provide any new answers.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Although some have suggested that the incarnation shows that God suffers with us.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;">So far we have suffering is unexplainable, suffering is caused by the cruelty of others, suffering is a test, suffering is a means to a greater good. </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">The classic, dominant answer is that suffering is punishment.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">That is what we find, for the most part in the Torah and the Prophets.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;">Here is the question:</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Is that true?</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Were the prophets correct?</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">I am going to argue that they were not correct.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">As one biblical scholar, John Dominic Crossan put it:</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">if the Hebrew people had been on their knees in prayer, day and night, and been perfect followers of YHWH, the Assyrians and then the Babylonians would have slaughtered them anyway.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;">This is why I find the prophets very difficult to read.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">I resonate with Amos and the call for social justice.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">I do like the visions of hope and justice we find there.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">I call that prophetic message good.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">The message of punishment, that everything from drought to the defeat by enemies is God’s way of punishing, I cannot accept.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">I don’t think that theology is good or good for us.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">That prophetic message to me is bad.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;">I have to have some special category for the almost pornographic language of the prophets as they graphically depict the violence of God on those whom God punishes.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Not good, worse than bad, it is ugly.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;">That is my quarrel with much of the Bible and the god who is portrayed there.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">I simply cannot accept a notion of God who punishes people either then or now because of their sin.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Am I setting myself as smarter than God for saying that?</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Perhaps.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Some would say that is exactly what I am doing.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">I do not think so.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">I think I am evaluating or assessing the merits of what the biblical authors wrote.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;">Actually, in an odd way, I think it makes me a lover of the Bible and the people who wrote it. </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">I want to understand it and them.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Why did they say things the way they did?</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">What was at stake for them? </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Understanding includes assessing. </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Because they saw god in a certain way then, does that mean we must see god in that way now?</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;">I may be wrong in my assessment.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">But I think that our personal growth is allowing ourselves the freedom to risk being wrong.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">We have the freedom, perhaps the responsibility to forge a way of thinking about God and our human plight in ways that move beyond ancient formulations.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;">There is a great deal of suffering in the world.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Much of it we can do little about except to be compassionate to others and to ourselves.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Yet there is much suffering that we may be able to alleviate and in some cases prevent.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">I do think that how we think about God does matter in how we respond to the challenges of life.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">I will give up God’s power and righteousness for God’s compassion any day.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><br /><br />Daring to assess the merits of the Bible may seem a road less traveled by in our culture.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;">So, I will close with another poem by Robert Frost that reminds me of this congregation and why I am glad I am here:</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;">TWO roads diverged in a yellow wood,</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><br />And sorry I could not travel both</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><br />And be one traveler, long I stood</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><br />And looked down one as far as I could<br />To where it bent in the undergrowth;</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><br />Then took the other, as just as fair,</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><br />And having perhaps the better claim,</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: 130%;">Because it was grassy and wanted wear;</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><br />Though as for that the passing there</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><br />Had worn them really about the same,</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span> <span style="font-size: 130%;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 130%;">And both that morning equally lay</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><br />In leaves no step had trodden black.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><br />Oh, I kept the first for another day!</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><br />Yet knowing how way leads on to way,</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><br />I doubted if I should ever come back.</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><br />I shall be telling this with a sigh</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><br />Somewhere ages and ages hence:</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><br />Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><br />I took the one less traveled by,</span><span style="font-size: 130%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><br />And that has made all the difference.</span></p></span></span>John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249594162307875182.post-29446380358462843662008-02-07T21:53:00.001-08:002014-05-15T13:30:12.418-07:00The Torah (Overview)<span style="font-size: 130%;"><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">The Torah which can be translated as Instruction or Law is made up of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. It was formed by various authors over centuries. See </span><a href="http://bibleandjive.blogspot.com/2008/01/documentary-hypothesis-quick-guide.html" style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-style: italic;">The Documentary Hypothesis Quick Guide</span></a><span style="font-family: arial;">. It tells the story from Creation to the death of Moses before the Hebrews arrive in the Promised Land. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Here is the January </span><a href="http://bibleandjive.blogspot.com/2008/01/january-reading-synopsis.html" style="font-family: arial;">quick guide</a><span style="font-family: arial;"> for the Torah. Here is </span><a href="http://bibleandjive.blogspot.com/2008/01/january-quiz-torah.html" style="font-family: arial;">the quiz</a>. </span>John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249594162307875182.post-3670507092727481142008-02-07T19:28:00.000-08:002008-02-07T23:10:13.429-08:00The Former Prophets (Overview)<span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-family:arial;">The Former Prophets are the books of Joshua, Judges, 1 & 2 Samuel, and 1 & 2 Kings. They are also known as the Deuteronomistic History because they follow the theological theme of the author of Deuteronomy. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">They follow the history from the entrance into the Promised Land, late 13th century BCE, to the deportation to Babylon in 587 BCE. These works (along with the </span></span><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:arial;font-size:130%;" >Book of Deuteronomy</span><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-family:arial;"> and some editorializing of Genesis through Numbers) were likely created in the 7th century BCE during the reign of Josiah (640-609 BCE) after the conquest of the Northern Kingdom (Israel) in 722 BCE.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">History is not the best word to describe these works. They are commentary and theological interpretation of history. </span></span><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:arial;font-size:130%;" >Former Prophets</span><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-family:arial;"> is more accurate as the authors make prophetic analysis regarding the history of Israel and Judah. That is they claim to speak for God. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">The theological theme throughout the Former Prophets is that the people will be successful in the land if they worship only YHWH. If they worship and serve other gods, YHWH will either remove his presence from them or will actively support the other nations in order to punish YHWH's people. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">The Former Prophets speak to the situation in Josiah's time and for Josiah. With the threat of Babylon on the horizon, the former prophets have one message, you will retain the land by fidelity to YHWH. Some scholars suggest that the Former Prophets were not completed until the Exile (587 - 539 BCE). In this setting, they speak to the people in exile that the promise that getting back the land will require fidelity to YHWH. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Michael Palmer provides an excellent overview in his article, </span><a style="font-style: italic; font-family: arial;" href="http://greek-language.com/bible/palmer/08formerprophets.PDF">The Former Prophets</a><span style="font-family:arial;">. Here is a brief outline of the writings with the aid of an excellent resource, </span><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/RTOT.HTM"><span style="font-style: italic;">Reading the Old Testament</span></a><span style="font-family:arial;">:</span><br /><br /><a style="font-family: arial;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/PART2/PT2_F2.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px;" src="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/PART2/PT2_F2.JPG" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH6/CH6_TC.HTM">Joshua</a><br /><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH6/CH6_0.HTM">Introduction and Key Terms</a><br /><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH6/CH6_0A.HTM">Story Line</a><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Chapters 1-12 </span><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH6/CH6_1.HTM">Campaigns of Conquest</a><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Chapters 13-21 </span><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH6/CH6_2.HTM">Tribal Territories</a><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Chapters 22-24 </span><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH6/CH6_3.HTM">Covenant Considerations</a><br /><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH6/CH6_TBA.HTM">Outline of Joshua</a><br /><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH6/CH6_4.HTM">Joshua as a Whole</a><br /><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH6/SG/SG.HTM">Take the Quiz</a><br /><br /><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH7/CH7_TC.HTM">Judges</a><br /><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH7/CH7_0.HTM">Introduction and Key Terms</a><br /><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH7/CH7_0A.HTM">Story Line</a><br /><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH7/CH7_1A.HTM">What is a Judge?</a><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Chapters 1-3 </span><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH7/CH7_1.HTM">Narrative Introduction</a><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Chapters 3-16 </span><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH7/CH7_2.HTM">The Judges at Work</a><br /><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH7/CH7_TBA.HTM">Outline of Judges</a><br /><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH7/CH7_3.HTM">Judges as a Whole</a><br /><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH7/SG/SG.HTM">Take the Quiz</a><br /><br /><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH8/CH8_TC.HTM">Samuel</a><br /><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH8/CH8_0.HTM">Introduction and Key Terms</a><br /><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH8/CH8_0A.HTM">Story Line</a><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">1 Sam. 1-12 </span><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH8/CH8_1.HTM">Samuel Cycle</a><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">1 Sam. 13-31 </span><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH8/CH8_2.HTM">Saul Cycle</a><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">2 Sam. 1-24 </span><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH8/CH8_3.HTM">David Cycle</a><br /><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH8/CH8_TBA.HTM">Outline of Samuel</a><br /><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH8/CH8_4.HTM">Samuel as a Whole</a><br /><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH8/SG/SG.HTM">Take the Quiz</a><br /><br /><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH9/CH9_TC.HTM">Kings</a><br /><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH9/CH9_0.HTM">Introduction and Key Terms</a><br /><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH9/CH9_0A.HTM">Story Line</a><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">1 Kings 1-11 </span><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH9/CH9_1.HTM">Solomon and the Unified Monarchy</a><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">1 Kings 12-2 Kings 17 </span><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH9/CH9_2.HTM">Parallel Histories of Israel and Judah</a><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">2 Kings 18-25 </span><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH9/CH9_3.HTM">Judah to the Babylonian Exile</a><br /><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH9/CH9_TBB.HTM">Outline of Kings</a><br /><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH9/CH9_4.HTM">Kings as a Whole</a><br /><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.hope.edu/academic/religion/bandstra/RTOT/CH9/SG/SG.HTM">Take the Quiz</a><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Here is my </span><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://bibleandjive.blogspot.com/2008/01/february-reading-synopsis-former.html">quick guide</a><span style="font-family:arial;"> to the Former Prophets and </span><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://bibleandjive.blogspot.com/2008/01/february-quiz-former-prophets_27.html">the quiz</a><span style="font-family:arial;"> to complete and turn in for your prize! Send your quiz answers to <a href="mailto:johnashuck@embarqmail.com">johnashuck@embarqmail.com</a>! </span><br /><br /><br /><br /></span>John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249594162307875182.post-33312943228851593132008-02-03T11:27:00.000-08:002008-02-03T11:31:26.192-08:00Conquest: A Sermon<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; font-family: arial;" align="center"><span style="font-size:130%;">Conquest<br />John Shuck<o:p><br /></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; font-family: arial;" align="center"><span style="font-size:130%;">February 3<sup>rd</sup>, 2008<br />Fist Presbyterian Church<br /><st1:place st="on"><st1:city st="on">Elizabethton</st1:City>, <st1:state st="on">Tennessee</st1:State></st1:place></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">As the year 2000 was approaching, our village in upstate <st1:state st="on"><st1:place st="on">New York</st1:place></st1:State> did a millennium celebration.<span style=""> </span>It was held at the high school.<span style=""> </span>Local musicians performed.<span style=""> </span>It was a full house.<span style=""> </span>The organizer of the event asked me if I could summarize the 20<sup>th</sup> century in about three to five minutes.<span style=""> </span>I am glad she didn’t ask me to summarize the millennium.<span style=""> </span></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">She asked me if I could, to do so without a lot of references to the wars.<span style=""> </span>She was looking for a nice, humorous history of the 20<sup>th</sup> century.<br /><o:p></o:p><br />So I put a little thing together.<span style=""> </span>It wasn’t exactly poetry.<span style=""> </span>But it wasn’t prose either.<span style=""> </span>I used images, slogans from popular culture, song titles, and personalities that I strung together in a quasi-narrative.<span style=""> </span>My Tuesday morning Bible study was helpful.<span style=""> </span>They were folks about my parents’ age and gave me personal memories regarding events long before I was born.<span style=""> </span>The final product was well-received.<span style=""> </span>I might share it with you sometime.</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">The point is that when I finished, I realized that I didn’t heed the organizer’s request too well.<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span>It was fairly humorous, as she hoped.<span style=""> </span>Yet it is nearly impossible to talk about the 20<sup>th</sup> century without reference to war.<span style=""> </span>The wars were turning points in our history.<span style=""> </span>For example, an entire generation, folks my parents’ age, is defined by the experience of World War Two.<span style=""> </span></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">History almost by definition is a history of war, of conquering and of being conquered.<span style=""> </span>Times of peace, in the overall scope of things, have been brief.<span style=""> </span>Even in times of peace, we find under the surface, a struggle.<span style=""> </span>Some may argue that history is a history of war because we have not found a way to tell stories of peace that are compelling.<span style=""> </span>A story without conflict is not a story.<span style=""> </span>Life is a struggle for survival.<span style=""> </span>The history of our lives collectively and individually, is the story of our struggle.</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">The Bible is a story of war.<span style=""> </span>As we read Joshua, Judges, Samuel and Kings, we are reading <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Israel</st1:place></st1:country-region>’s war history.<span style=""> </span>The stories are about the struggle.<span style=""> </span>When the struggle ends, we find a sentence that says, “And the land had rest for forty years.”<span style=""> </span>There are no stories about these restful times.<span style=""> </span>They are not interesting, apparently.<span style=""> </span>The struggle, the conflict, is the story.<span style=""> </span></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">In the book of Genesis, Jacob, the son of Isaac, wrestles with YHWH.<span style=""> </span>After his all night wrestling match, in which Jacob does not give up, YHWH gives him a new name, <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Israel</st1:place></st1:country-region>.<span style=""> </span>El means God.<span style=""> </span>Ytzr means struggle.<span style=""> </span><st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Israel</st1:place></st1:country-region> could mean “God struggles.”<span style=""> </span>It could also mean “he (or she) who struggles with God.”<span style=""> </span>Life is a struggle.</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">The earliest stories of YHWH are war songs.<span style=""> </span>The scholarly consensus is that one of the oldest pieces of literature in the Bible is found Judges 5.<span style=""> </span>The story is told in narrative form in Judges 4.<span style=""> </span>But in Judges 5 the story is told in the form of a song.<span style=""> </span>You might think of this song being sung in the tent at night.<span style=""> </span>This song would have been part of a repertoire of songs and tales that would be passed on through the generations. <span style=""> </span>This song was finally captured in written form and placed alongside the narrative in the Book of Judges.<span style=""> </span></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">It is the son of Deborah and Barak.<span style=""> </span>It is the victory over Sisera.<span style=""> </span>After Sisera’s army is defeated, Sisera flees.<span style=""> </span>He goes to the tent of Heber the Kenite.<span style=""> </span>They had been allies.<span style=""> </span>But the wife of Heber the Kenite, Jael, is on the side of the Hebrews.<span style=""> </span>She gives Sisera hospitality, with a surprise at the end.<span style=""> </span>Here is the song:</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">Joshua 5:</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><i style="">24‘Most blessed of women be Jael,<br /><span style=""> </span>the wife of Heber the Kenite,<br /><span style=""> </span>of tent-dwelling women most blessed.<br />25He asked water and she gave him milk,<br /><span style=""> </span>she brought him curds in a lordly bowl.<br />26She put her hand to the tent-peg<br /><span style=""> </span>and her right hand to the workmen’s mallet;<br />she struck Sisera a blow,<br /><span style=""> </span>she crushed his head,<br /><span style=""> </span>she shattered and pierced his temple.<br />27He sank, he fell,<br /><span style=""> </span>he lay still at her feet;<br />at her feet he sank, he fell;<br /><span style=""> </span>where he sank, there he fell dead.<o:p></o:p></i><br /><o:p></o:p><br />I remember falling in love with Jael when my Introduction to Literature professor read that poem for us when I was a Freshman in college.<span style=""> </span>Jael is a dangerous love, to be sure.<span style=""> </span>You want to be on your guard when she is nicest to you.<span style=""> </span></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">That is poetry.<span style=""> </span>That is the poetry of war.<span style=""> </span>It is the praise of cunning.<span style=""> </span>It is the praise of courage and nerve.<span style=""> </span>The earliest songs human being sang about theirs gods were songs of war.<span style=""> </span>YHWH before he was even a creator-god was a god of war.<span style=""> </span>He rides across the sky on his chariot to do battle with Marduk and Baal.<span style=""> </span></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">Before the escape from <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Egypt</st1:place></st1:country-region> was a story it was a song.<span style=""> </span>It is captured in Exodus 15:</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><i style="">Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to YHWH:<br />‘I will sing to YHWH, for he has triumphed gloriously;<br /><span style=""> </span>horse and rider he has thrown into the sea.<br />2YHWH is my strength and my might,<br /><span style=""> </span>and he has become my salvation;<br />this is my God, and I will praise him,<br /><span style=""> </span>my father’s God, and I will exalt him.<br />3YHWH is a warrior;<br /><span style=""> </span>YHWH is his name.</i></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">YHWH is no philosophical first cause.<span style=""> </span>There is no monotheism at this point in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Israel</st1:place></st1:country-region>’s history.<span style=""> </span>These first songs to YHWH were songs to the god of strength.<span style=""> </span>Earth and heaven are filled with gods, but YHWH is the strongest.</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">The Song of Moses continues:</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><i style=""><sup><span style="display: none;">11</span></sup>‘Who is like you, YHWH, among the gods?<br />Who is like you, majestic in holiness,<br /> awesome in splendor, doing wonders?<o:p></o:p></i></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">Lest we think YHWH is simply an “Old Testament” god, we should hear the song of Mary, the mother of Jesus, again:</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><i style="">‘My soul magnifies YHWH,<br /><sup><span style="display: none;">47</span></sup> and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,<br /><sup><span style="display: none;">48</span></sup>for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant.<br /> Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed;<br /><sup><span style="display: none;">49</span></sup>for the Mighty One has done great things for me,<br /> and holy is his name.<br /><sup><span style="display: none;">50</span></sup>His mercy is for those who fear him<br /> from generation to generation.<br /><sup><span style="display: none;">51</span></sup>He has shown strength with his arm;<br /> he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.<br /><sup><span style="display: none;">52</span></sup>He has brought down the powerful from their thrones,<br /> and lifted up the lowly;<br /><sup><span style="display: none;">53</span></sup>he has filled the hungry with good things,<br /> and sent the rich away empty</i>.</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">YHWH does change over time.<span style=""> </span>He matures.<span style=""> </span>He becomes wiser in his ways.<span style=""> </span>YHWH broadens his vision.<span style=""> </span>Brute strength is not enough to control his people although he isn’t bashful about using it when he thinks the need arises.<span style=""> </span>YHWH ultimately has to figure out how to deal with the shortcomings of violence.<span style=""> </span>YHWH finds other aspects of his personality.<span style=""> </span></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">YHWH discovers that he is deeply compassionate.<span style=""> </span>YHWH has a soft spot for the underdog.<span style=""> </span>If you are interested in looking at YHWH in this way, I recommend Jack Miles, <a href="http://www.librarything.com/catalog.php?book=26376703"><i style="">God: A Biography</i></a>, and the sequel, <a href="http://www.librarything.com/catalog.php?book=26490430"><i style="">Christ:<span style=""> </span>A Crisis in the Life of God</i></a>.<span style=""> </span></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">The songs we sing and the stories we tell about the gods are stories and songs about ourselves.<span style=""> </span>The evolution of God is our evolution.<span style=""> </span>But before we leave YHWH the warrior, the one who commands obedience, and in the book of Joshua, slaughter, we need to be honest.<span style=""> </span>Have we really left him?<span style=""> </span>My answer is, no we have not.<span style=""> </span>It may be a long time before we do.<span style=""> </span>We may never.<span style=""> </span></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">Reading the book of Joshua is about enough to turn most sensitive people into atheists.<span style=""> </span>YHWH is difficult to stomach.<span style=""> </span>But he will not go away.<span style=""> </span>In our attempt to reject YHWH, the warrior, he comes back even more ferociously.<span style=""> </span>In an effort to substitute a deity who is more gentle and mild in his place, we simply bury YHWH the warrior deeper into our unconscious awareness.<span style=""> </span></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">YHWH the warrior is very much alive whether we admit it or not.<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span>YHWH the warrior is not good to leave unattended in our unconscious.<span style=""> </span>He does destructive things there.<span style=""> </span>In saying 70 of the <a href="http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/thomas.html"><i style="">Gospel of Thomas</i></a>, Jesus is reported to have said:</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><i style="">"If you bring forth what is within you, what you bring forth will save you. If you do not bring forth what is within you, what you do not bring forth will destroy you."<o:p></o:p></i></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">YHWH the warrior is within us.<span style=""> </span>As westerners, whether we are believers in God or YHWH or Jesus or not, we have inherited them all.<span style=""> </span>Denying their existence is only repressing them.<span style=""> </span>They do not exist out there, but in here.<span style=""> </span>As depth psychologists remind us, the gods are symbolic representations of our drives.<span style=""> </span>They are as real as our secret delight in the misfortune of our enemies.<span style=""> </span>They are as real as the desires and fantasies we admit to no one.<span style=""> </span>YHWH the warrior is our shadow.<span style=""> </span>What do we do with a shadow?<span style=""> </span>We are to embrace it.<span style=""> </span></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><i style="">"If you bring forth what is within you, what you bring forth will save you. If you do not bring forth what is within you, what you do not bring forth will destroy you."<o:p></o:p></i></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">I have to be careful here.<span style=""> </span>I could be misinterpreted as suggesting that we need to embrace or glorify war and violence.<span style=""> </span>No.<span style=""> </span>I am talking about psychically embracing the warrior within.<span style=""> </span></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">Ghandi is reported to have said that he wanted no one in his non-violent army who wasn’t able and willing to kill.<span style=""> </span>He didn’t want people who hadn’t embraced and known the warrior within themselves.<span style=""> </span>He could do something with those people.<span style=""> </span>One can only be truly non-violent when they are capable of violence, but then come to realize that non-violence is the better way.<span style=""> </span></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">We need the warrior.<span style=""> </span>We need the warrior’s strength and courage.<span style=""> </span>We need the warrior’s cunning. We need the warrior’s ability and willingness for self-sacrifice.<span style=""> </span>We can call on that warrior to defend our children, the environment, and human dignity.<span style=""> </span></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">If we think of the various archetypes as tools in a toolbox that we can draw on when the occasion warrants, YHWH the warrior is a tool.<span style=""> </span></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">However, and this is a big however.<span style=""> </span>We need other tools.<span style=""> </span>As YHWH matured and evolved throughout <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Israel</st1:place></st1:country-region>’s history and discovered other aspects of his personality, we too, need to evolve and mature.<span style=""> </span>There is compassion.<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span>Over it all is wisdo</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">I think that our history of war, particularly in the West, is not because we have embraced YHWH the warrior.<span style=""> </span>Just the opposite.<span style=""> </span>YHWH the warrior has controlled us unconsciously.<span style=""> </span></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">YHWH the warrior, the one who commands destruction, is within us.<span style=""> </span>Unless we consciously embrace the warrior, name it, and tame it, the warrior will act out in truly destructive and harmful ways.<span style=""> </span>Each of us has the desire to obliterate our enemies.<span style=""> </span>Unless we admit it, we are doomed to act on it.<span style=""> </span>In psychology we call it passive-aggressiveness.<span style=""> </span></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">As we read the stories of Joshua through Kings, we are invited to enter them.<span style=""> </span>They are the stories of our violence.<span style=""> </span>We are invited to bring YHWH the warrior to consciousness and to bring the warrior in us to consciousness.<span style=""> </span>Then, and only then, can we name this violence and tame it.</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">In Psalm 144:1 we read:<span style=""> </span></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><i style="">Blessed be YHWH, my rock,<br /><span style=""> </span>who trains my hands for war, and my fingers for battle;<o:p></o:p></i></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">Yes.<span style=""> </span>But we must also embrace YHWH the compassionate.<span style=""> </span>What does YHWH require?<span style=""> </span>From Micah, chapter 6:</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><i style="font-family: arial;">He has told you, O mortal, what is good;<br /><span style=""> </span>and what does YHWH require of you<br />but to do justice, and to love kindness,<br /><span style=""> </span>and to walk humbly with your God?</i><br /><o:p style="font-family: arial;"></o:p><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Amen.</span><span style=""><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span> </span></span></p>John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249594162307875182.post-39683170893229277032008-01-31T06:19:00.000-08:002014-05-15T13:37:23.310-07:00Is the Bible History or Fiction? Quick Guide<span style="font-size: 130%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">As we read the stories of the Hebrew scriptures we may wonder if are reading historical reportage of events or if we are reading stories of creative imagination. We may decide that somewhere between these poles the truth is found. Most of us would see the story of Adam and Eve in the garden as a myth rather than an event of history. What about the stories of Abraham, Moses, and David? </span> <span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><br />There is much debate on this theory among biblical scholars today for both the Hebrew scriptures and the Christian New Testament. The debate is called, somewhat inaccurately, the maximalist-minimalist debate. Maximalists generally affirm that the Bible is accurate historically and minimalists affirm that it is not and that it never intended to be read as such. </span> <span style="font-family: arial;">Most scholars fall somewhere between these poles.<br /><br />Archaeology and literary and rhetorical criticism have come of age in the past couple of decades to show that the Bible is a work of theology more than history. Archaeology has shown that there is very little evidence for the "events" recounted in the Bible. Literary and rhetorical criticism has helped us see these stories as works of art. </span> <span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><br />This may lead to the next question of realism. Is there something real and true about the theological claims in the Bible if we view them as imaginative creations? That is an important question. Do these stories in some way, tell us the truth about the human condition and about the nature of reality itself? </span> <span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><br />For example, is the character YHWH, more than a literary character, a projection of artistic imagination on one hand, and more than an actual being who acted this way in history on the other? Is their a reality to YHWH even if the stories about him are not real in the historical sense? This question will require of us who find the Bible as the normative text for the church to enter into these stories and let the Bible confront us even as we confront it.</span></span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><br />Old Testament scholar, Walter Brueggemann, has spent a great deal of time thinking about these kinds of questions.<br /><br />A helpful book is his </span><a href="http://www.librarything.com/work.php?book=26376491" style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Introduction to the Old Testament: The Canon and Christian Imagination</span></a><span style="font-family: arial;">. He goes through the Hebrew Scriptures, book by book, with a fresh look at these texts. </span> <span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><br />For more discussion on the maximalist/minimalist debate, you might find these </span><a href="http://www.bibleinterp.com/articles/Minimalism_essays.shtml">Essays on Minimalism</a><span style="font-family: arial;"> helpful from the on-line magazine, </span><a href="http://www.bibleinterp.com/" style="font-family: arial;">The Bible and Interpretation</a><span style="font-family: arial;">.<br /><br /><br /> </span> </span>John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249594162307875182.post-23889250216612996092008-01-28T21:15:00.000-08:002014-05-15T13:28:35.760-07:00The Documentary Hypothesis: Quick Guide<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julius_Wellhausen" style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: 130%;"></span></a><span style="font-size: 130%;"><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4735/3291/1600/wellhausen.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" style="font-family: arial;"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4735/3291/1600/wellhausen.jpg" style="cursor: pointer; float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; width: 200px;" /></a></span><span style="font-size: 130%;"><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julius_Wellhausen" style="font-family: arial;">Julius Wellhausen</a><span style="font-family: arial;"> is famous for the </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Documentary_hypothesis" style="font-family: arial;">Documentary Hypothesis</a><span style="font-family: arial;">.</span><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">He changed the way we looked at the formation of the Torah. In his theory, there was an original epic, modified by a storyteller we call J. Four hundred years later, this epic is modified by another storyteller we call P. Of course, long before anything is written, these stories are told and retold in oral form.</span><br /></span><br />
<ul style="font-family: arial;">
<li><span style="font-size: 130%;">J gets her name by calling God, Yahweh. J's narrative was formed in the </span><span style="color: #663366; font-size: 130%;">10th century BCE</span> </li>
</ul>
<ul style="font-family: arial;">
<li><span style="font-size: 130%;">E calls God, Elohim. E represents the Northern Kingdom's view of history after the Israelite monarchy split in </span><span style="color: #663366; font-size: 130%;">922</span><span style="font-size: 130%;">. (J represents the Southern Kingdom's view and eventually J and E are combined).</span></li>
</ul>
<ul style="font-family: arial;">
<li><span style="font-size: 130%;">D stands for Deuteronomic history which accounts for the Book of Deuteronomy and the books of Joshua, Judges, 1 & 2 Samuel, and 1 & 2 Kings (</span><span style="color: #663366; font-size: 130%;">7th century BCE</span><span style="font-size: 130%;">).</span></li>
</ul>
<ul style="font-family: arial;">
<li><span style="font-size: 130%;">P gets his name because he is a priest. P's narrative is dated in the </span><span style="color: #663366; font-size: 130%;">6th century BCE</span><span style="font-size: 130%;">.</span></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-size: 130%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Here is a clever diagram:</span><br /><br /><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4735/3291/1600/jepd.1.gif" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" style="font-family: arial;"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4735/3291/320/jepd.png" style="cursor: pointer; display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center;" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">There are two separate creation accounts in Genesis.</span><br /><br /><a href="http://bible.oremus.org/?ql=27220741" style="font-family: arial;">Genesis 1:1-2:4a </a><span style="font-family: arial;">is a later account written by P in the 6th century during the Babylonian captivity.</span><br /><br /><a href="http://bible.oremus.org/?ql=27220741" style="font-family: arial;">Genesis 2:4b-4:16</a><span style="font-family: arial;"> is the earlier account written by J in the 10th century BCE. This tells the story of Adam, Eve, the garden, the serpent and so forth.<br /></span><span style="font-family: arial;">Since Wellhausen's time scholars have learned more about oral tradition. We don't think so much as individual authors sitting down and writing things. It is more accurate to these as strands of different traditions. Here is that same diagram with a bit more detail that includes the Deuteronomic history or former prophets:<br /></span></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGhe1BCfpBshxU1BahNggwJ9U76Wt55UH5QWaxvDZfSBZ3NdIz4bJn5sGR9zlWjEG17eM-yELWiNxvfSCkyiK0u2avsIIzYRpNJCRaUG1zMqncH3idE3Y9P7O0rxj3ytZvtjnqvQnUUWU/s1600-h/Moderndocumenthypothesis.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGhe1BCfpBshxU1BahNggwJ9U76Wt55UH5QWaxvDZfSBZ3NdIz4bJn5sGR9zlWjEG17eM-yELWiNxvfSCkyiK0u2avsIIzYRpNJCRaUG1zMqncH3idE3Y9P7O0rxj3ytZvtjnqvQnUUWU/s400/Moderndocumenthypothesis.jpg" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5160766319119419842" style="cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 312px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 325px;" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: 130%;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><br /><br /></span>John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249594162307875182.post-76822074798574362082008-01-28T20:51:00.000-08:002008-01-28T20:57:13.514-08:00Creation: Genesis and Eneuma Elish<span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-family:arial;">The <span style="font-style: italic;">Enuma Elish</span> is a Babylonian epic.</span></span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-family:arial;">Enuma Elish is translated as “When on high” and refers to its opening words.</span></span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:130%;" > </span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-family:arial;">The clay tablets found in the 19</span><sup style="font-family: arial;">th</sup><span style="font-family:arial;"> century CE date to no later than the 12</span><sup style="font-family: arial;">th</sup></span> <span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-family:arial;">century BCE. The poem itself goes back much earlier, perhaps to </span></span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-family:arial;">1700 BCE or even 2000 BCE.</span><br /><br /><a style="font-family: arial;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4735/3291/400/enumaelish.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4735/3291/400/enumaelish.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /></span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><blockquote style="color: rgb(102, 51, 51);font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">For a helpful translation with a summary of each tablet go <a href="http://www.cresourcei.org/enumaelish.html">here</a>.</span><span style="font-size:130%;"> </span><span style="font-size:130%;">A more literal translation is <a href="http://www.sacred-texts.com/ane/enuma.htm">here</a>.</span><span style="font-size:130%;"> </span></blockquote><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:130%;" > </span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p></o:p>This poem celebrates Marduk as the king of creation.</span><span style="font-size:130%;"> </span><span style="font-size:130%;">It was read at yearly festivals.</span><span style="font-size:130%;"> </span><span style="font-size:130%;">This poem is important for understanding the biblical myths for a couple of reasons.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:130%;" >First</span><span style="font-size:130%;">, the writers of Genesis 1 would have been familiar with it during their period of captivity in <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Babylon</st1:place></st1:city> that began in 587 BCE.</span><span style="font-size:130%;"> </span><span style="font-size:130%;">The influence of Enuma Elish would have likely been part of the collective mythology even before the captivity of the people of <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Jerusalem</st1:place></st1:city>.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:130%;" >Second</span><span style="font-size:130%;">, Enuma Elish holds many features in common, not only with Genesis 1, but other creation accounts in the Bible (ie. Job and the Psalter).</span><span style="font-size:130%;"> </span><span style="font-size:130%;">It is clear that the writers of the Bible borrowed heavily from this myth as they wrote their own myths.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p></o:p>Tablets four and five describe Marduk’s slaying of Tiamat, the formation of Earth and Sky from her carcass and the establishment of the stars, sun, and moon (represented as gods) who under Marduk’s control keep things going.</span><span style="font-size:130%;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p></o:p>This is from Tablet Four:</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p></o:p></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);font-size:130%;" >He constructed stations for the great gods,</span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);font-size:130%;" >Fixing their astral likenesses as the stars of the Zodiac.</span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);font-size:130%;" >He determined the year and into sections he divided it;</span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);font-size:130%;" >He set up three constellations for each of the twelve months.</span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);font-size:130%;" >After defining the days of the year by means of heavenly figures,</span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);font-size:130%;" >He founded the station of the pole star [Nebiru] to determine their bounds,</span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);font-size:130%;" >That none might err or go astray.</span><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);"></o:p></span></p> <p style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);font-family:arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">Alongside it he set up the stations of Enlil and Ea.<br />Having opened up the gates on both sides,<br />He strengthened the locks to the left and the right. (10)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);font-family:arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p></o:p>In her belly he established the zenith.<br />The Moon he caused to shine, entrusting the night to him.<br />He appointed him a creature of the night to signify the days,<br />And marked off every month, without cease, by means of his crown.<br />At the month's very start, rising over the land,<br />You shall have luminous horns to signify six days,<br />On the seventh day reaching a half-crown.<br />So shall the fifteen-day period be like one another-two halves for each month.<br />When the sun overtakes you at the base of heaven,<br />Diminish your crown and retrogress in light. (20)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);font-family:arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p><br />At the time of disappearance approach the course of the sun,<br />And on the thirtieth you shall again stand in opposition to the sun.<br />I have appointed a sign, follow its path,<br />. . . approach and give judgement."<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);font-family:arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);font-family:arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);font-size:130%;" >[Lines 25-44 are badly damaged and untranslatable. Apparently after Marduk created the moon he then created the sun (Shamash).]</span><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);font-family:arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p><br />After he had appointed the days to Shamash, (45)<br />And had established the precincts of night and day,<br />Taking the spittle of Tiamat<br />Marduk created . . .<br />He formed the clouds and filled them with water.<br />The raising of winds, the bringing of rain and cold, (50)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);font-family:arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p><br />Making the mist smoke, piling up . . .<br />These he planned himself, took into his own hand.<br />Putting her head into position he formed thereon the mountains,<br />Opening the deep which was in flood,<br />He caused to flow from her eyes the Euphrates and <st1:place st="on">Tigris</st1:place>,<br />Stopping her nostrils he left . . . ,<br />He formed from her breasts the lofty mountains,<br />Therein he drilled springs for the wells to carry off the water.<br />Twisting her tail he bound it to Durmah,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);font-family:arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">. . . Apsu at his foot, (60)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);font-family:arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p><br />. . . her crotch, she was fastened to the heavens,<br />Thus he covered the heavens and established the earth.<br />. . . in the midst of Tiamat he made flow,<br />. . . his net he completely let out,<br />So he created heaven and earth . . . ,<br />. . . their bounds . . . established.<br />When he had designed his rules and fashioned his ordinances,<br />He founded the shrines and handed them over to Ea.<br />The Tablet of Destinies which he had taken from Kingu he carried,<br />He brought it as the first gift of greeting, he gave it to Anu. (70)</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p><br />Now compare to Genesis 1:14-19:</span></p> <p style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);font-family:arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p><br />14 And God said, “Let there be lights in the dome of the sky to separate the day from the night; and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years, 15and let them be lights in the dome of the sky to give light upon the earth.” And it was so. 16God made the two great lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night—and the stars. 17God set them in the dome of the sky to give light upon the earth, 18to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p><br />A much condensed version!</span><span style="font-size:130%;"> </span><span style="font-size:130%;">Note the “demythologizing”.</span><span style="font-size:130%;"> </span><span style="font-size:130%;">Shamash (the sun god) becomes shemesh (the sun).</span><span style="font-size:130%;"> </span><span style="font-size:130%;">The moon god becomes the moon.</span><span style="font-size:130%;"> </span><span style="font-size:130%;">Elohim seems to screw in the light bulbs so to speak.</span><span style="font-size:130%;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p>In Tablet six, Marduk creates humans out of the blood and bone of the slain Kingu, who had helped Tiamat in her uprising:</span></p> <p style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p><br />When Marduk heard the words of the gods,<br />His heart prompted him to fashion artful works.<br />Opening his mouth, he addressed Ea<br />To impart the plan he had conceived in his heart:<br />"I will take blood and fashion bone.<br />I will establish a savage, ‘man’ shall be his name.<br />truly, savage-man I will create.<br />He shall be charged with the service of the gods<br />That they might be at ease!<br />The ways of the gods I will artfully alter. (10)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">Though alike revered, into two groups they shall be divided."<br />Ea answered him, speaking a word to him,<br />Giving him another plan for the relief of the gods:<br />"Let but one of their brothers be handed over;<br />He alone shall perish that mankind may be fashioned.<br />Let the great gods be here in Assembly,<br />Let the guilty be handed over that they may endure."<br />Marduk summoned the great gods to Assembly;<br />Presiding graciously, he issued instructions.<br />To his utterance the gods pay heed.<br />The king addressed a word to the Anunnaki: (20)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">"If your former statement was true,<br />Now declare the truth on oath by me!<br />Who was it that contrived the uprising,<br />And made Tiamat rebel, and joined battle?<br />Let him be handed over who contrived the uprising.<br />His guilt I will make him bear. You shall dwell in peace!"<br />The Igigi, the great gods, replied to him,<br />To Lugaldimmerankia, counselor of the gods, their lord:<br />"It was Kingu who contrived the uprising,<br />And made Tiamat rebel, and joined battle." (30)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family:arial;"><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);font-size:130%;" >They bound him, holding him before Ea.</span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);font-size:130%;" > They imposed on him his punishment and severed his blood vessels.</span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);font-size:130%;" > Out of his blood they fashioned mankind.</span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);font-size:130%;" > He imposed on him the service and let free the gods.</span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);font-size:130%;" > After Ea, the wise, had created mankind,</span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);font-size:130%;" > Had imposed upon them the service of the gods--</span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);font-size:130%;" > That work was beyond comprehension;</span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);font-size:130%;" > As artfully planned by Marduk, did Nudimmud create it--</span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);font-size:130%;" > Marduk, the king of the gods divided</span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);font-size:130%;" > All the great gods [Anunnaki] above and below. (40)</span><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p><br />And from Genesis 1:26-28</span></p> <p style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);font-family:arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p><br />26Then God said, “Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the wild animals of the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.” 27So God created humankind in his image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. 28God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p>Again, we have a much condensed version.</span><span style="font-size:130%;"> </span><span style="font-size:130%;">Also, humans are not created from the blood of an enemy to be slave to gods, but are created by Elohim who blesses them.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p>Genesis 1 reflects a mature development in Hebrew theology. Genesis 1 is no earlier than the 6<sup>th</sup> century BCE.</span><span style="font-size:130%;"> </span><span style="font-size:130%;"> </span><span style="font-size:130%;">It is much more sophisticated than Enuma Elish or some of the earlier myths in the Bible itself (Job and Psalms).</span><span style="font-size:130%;"> </span><span style="font-size:130%;"> </span><span style="font-size:130%;">Genesis 1 is less “mythological” and it has a more positive vision of the creator and humankind.</span><span style="font-size:130%;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p></o:p>But, Genesis 1 is still a myth. </span><span style="font-size:130%;"> </span><span style="font-size:130%;">One of its basic functions was to tell the story of why humans are to work six days and keep the seventh day holy.</span><span style="font-size:130%;"> </span><span style="font-size:130%;">It tells us nothing about how human beings, Earth, or the universe evolved. </span><span style="font-size:130%;"> </span><span style="font-size:130%;">It is a myth based on the ancient understanding of the cosmos.</span></p><p face="arial" class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span></p>John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249594162307875182.post-43123906359919376672008-01-28T20:33:00.000-08:002008-01-28T20:47:10.434-08:00Ancient Cosmology: Quick Guide<span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-family:arial;">Imagine if you had never been told that Earth is a globe that rotates and revolves around the sun. You would likely never figure that out. In fact, Copernicus, just over 500 years ago, through observations, showed the Sun as the center of the solar system, not Earth. Copernicus shattered what seemed to be common sense. </span><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:arial;" ><br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:arial;">Just going by your common sense observations, what would you see? You would see Earth that is flat. You look up and see a big blue dome that stretches to the horizon. By day, a ball of fire moves across the dome. How does that happen? At night another lesser light moves through the dome. And what are all of those white dots at night? You can see them through the dome. They move in patterns. Who moves them? What are they?<br /><br /></span></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4735/3291/1600/Cosmology2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4735/3291/1600/Cosmology2.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-style: italic;">The above image is taken from Michael Palmer's web page in the</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">syllabus for his Religion 103 class,</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">"</span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.greek-language.com/bible/lectureoutlines/index.html">The History and Literature of the Bible.</a><span style="font-style: italic;">"</span><br /></div><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-family:arial;"> </span> <span style="font-family:arial;">What holds up this dome? Probably the mountains at the edge. What holds up Earth? Perhaps pillars underneath. From where does the rain come? It appears like outside the dome is water and below Earth is water. On occasion, the spouts are opened and water flows down from the dome and up from Earth. What if it never stopped raining? The space between Earth and Dome would fill up with water. That would be scary. Everything would drown.</span> <span style="font-family:arial;">What if you could build a tower tall enough to reach the dome? That would be awesome! You could reach the dome and talk to the gods.</span> <span style="font-family:arial;">The ancients with variations saw their world--earth and heaven (sky-firmament-dome) in that way. </span><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://bible.oremus.org/?ql=26879268">Genesis 1</a><span style="font-family:arial;"> now makes sense:</span> </span><blockquote style="color: rgb(153, 51, 153); font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><sup class="ww">6</sup>And God said, “Let there be a dome in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.” <sup class="ww">7</sup>So God made the dome and separated the waters that were under the dome from the waters that were above the dome. And it was so. <sup class="ww">8</sup>God called the dome Sky. And there was evening and there was morning, the second day.</span></blockquote><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-family:arial;">The "waters" are the whole of existence itself. Elohim makes a living space holding back the waters above the dome from below Earth. In the earlier Babylonian myth, </span><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.sacred-texts.com/ane/enuma.htm">Enuma Elish,</a><span style="font-family:arial;"> Marduk does the same thing Elohim does. Except in the Babylonian myth, it is even more "mythological" in that virtually everything is personified. Marduk defeats Tiamat (a personification of the watery chaos) and splits her carcass in two. Half of Tiamat's carcass becomes the dome and the other half Earth.</span> <span style="font-family:arial;">The Babylonians and the Hebrews saw the same physical universe (the dome above and the earth below holding back waters) but they had a different mythology to explain its origins.</span> <span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />Obviously, Genesis 1 has nothing to say to us about the physical creation of the universe as we see it today. However, it can inform us theologically. For example, what is the difference between a god who violently creates Earth and Sky by defeating a chaotic monster versus a god who speaks and it is done and "it is good?"</span> <span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />Later in the </span><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:arial;" >Enuma Elish</span><span style="font-family:arial;">, Marduk creates humans. He creates them from the blood and bone of his enemy, Kingu. These humans are created to be slaves to the gods. What is the difference theologically between and understanding of humanity this a creation of violence enslaved to the forces of the universe and between an understanding of humanity that is the creation of a god who creates humanity in the image of god, and declares humanity good?</span> <span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />For more detail about this, here are some websites:</span> <a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.reference.com/browse/wiki/Hebrew_astronomy">Hebrew Astronomy</a><span style="font-family:arial;">, </span><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.reference.com/browse/wiki/Biblical_cosmology">Biblical Cosmology</a><span style="font-family:arial;">, and </span><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.secularhumanism.org/library/fi/avalos_18_4.html">Council for Secular Humanism.</a> <span style="font-family:arial;">From the Biblical Cosmology website here are some wonderful quotes from Martin Luther who struggled with the Bible and the new cosmology of Copernicus who he calls "an upstart astrologer". I will close with these:</span> </span><h4 style="color: rgb(153, 51, 153); font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">Martin Luther</span></h4><p style="color: rgb(153, 51, 153); font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">Martin Luther (1483–1546) began the protestant reformations with his sincere attempts to interpret the exact meanings of Biblical scripture. Likewise, he made sincere attempts to grasp a Biblical understanding of astronomy.</span></p><ul style="color: rgb(153, 51, 153);font-family:arial;"><li><span style="font-size:130%;">"<span style="font-style: italic;">Scripture simply says that the moon, the sun, and the stars were placed in the firmament of the heaven, below and above which heaven are the waters... It is likely that the stars are fastened to the firmament like globes of fire, to shed light at night... We Christians must be different from the philosophers in the way we think about the causes of things. And if some are beyond our comprehension like those before us concerning the waters above the heavens, we must believe them rather than wickedly deny them or presumptuously interpret them in conformity with our understanding.</span>" --Martin Luther.</span></li><li><span style="font-size:130%;">"<span style="font-style: italic;">...the whole firmament moves swiftly around, every moment thousands of leagues, which, doubtless, is done by some angel. `Tis wonderful so great a vault should go about in so short a time.</span>" --Martin Luther.</span></li><li><span style="font-size:130%;">"<span style="font-style: italic;">People gave ear to an upstart astrologer who strove to show that the earth revolves, not the heavens or the firmament, the sun and the moon. Whoever wishes to appear clever must devise some new system, which of all systems is of course the very best. This fool wishes to reverse the entire science of astronomy; but sacred Scripture tells us that Joshua commanded the sun to stand still, and not the earth.</span>" --Martin Luther.</span></li></ul>John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249594162307875182.post-69093869547352475962008-01-27T15:08:00.000-08:002008-01-27T15:11:32.263-08:00June Quiz (Five Scrolls and Post-Exilic Writings)<p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">June Quiz on the Five Scrolls (Song of Songs, Ruth, Lamentations, Ecclesiastes, Esther)<span style=""> </span>and the Post-Exilic Writings (Daniel, Ezra, Nehemiah, 1 & 2 Chronicles):</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">1.<span style=""> </span>Who said the following: “I am doing a great work and I cannot come down.<span style=""> </span>Why should the work stop while I leave it and come down to you”?<br />a. Ezra to the Levites, during the reading of the law<br />b. Haggai to Zerubbabel during the building of the second temple<br />c. Solomon to Hiram during the building of the first temple<br />d. Nehemiah to Sanballat during the building of the wall of <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Jerusalem</st1:place></st1:City></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">2.<span style=""> </span>To what event does the book of Lamentations respond?<br />a. the death of Jonathan<br />b. the death of Josiah<br />c. the division of the kingdom<br />d. the destruction of <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Jerusalem</st1:place></st1:City></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">3. “By the rivers of <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Babylon</st1:place></st1:City> – there we sat down and there we wept” is followed immediately by what words?<br />a. in the presence of our enemies.<br />b. Sing us one of the songs of <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Zion</st1:place></st1:City>.<br />c. when we remembered <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Zion</st1:place></st1:City>.<br />d. Why do the nations conspire and the people plot in vain?</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">4.<span style=""> </span>Which of the following is NOT a quotation from the Song of Solomon?<br />a. “Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth!”<br />b. “My beloved had a vineyard on a very fertile hill.”<br />c. “I am black and beautiful, O daughters of <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Jerusalem</st1:place></st1:City>.”<br />d. “My mother’s sons were angry with me; they made me keeper of the vineyards.”</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">5.<span style=""> </span>To what town do Naomi and Ruth return from <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Moab</st1:place></st1:country-region>?<br />a. Timnah<br />b. Oboth<br />c. <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Bethlehem</st1:place></st1:City><br />d. <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Nazareth</st1:place></st1:City></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">6. Which saying does NOT appear in the book of Ecclesiastes?<br />a. "Vanity of vanities!<span style=""> </span>All is vanity."<br />b. "For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven."<br />c. "Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge?"<br />d. "It is better to go to the house of mourning than to go to the house of feasting."</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">7.<span style=""> </span>How does this statement conclude: "The race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor bread to the wise, nor riches to the intelligent, nor favor to the skillful..."?<br />a. But the Lord rules over all<br />b. But the just shall live by faith<br />c. But time and chance happen to all<br />d. But the last shall be first</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">8.<span style=""> </span>In Esther, Haman becomes furious with Mordecai because he<br />a. wore rich clothing<br />b. would not bow for Haman<br />c. had a higher social position than Haman<br />d. was Esther's cousin</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">9.<span style=""> </span>What was Nehemiah’s great achievement?<br />a. rebuilding the wall of <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Jerusalem</st1:place></st1:City><br />b. defeating the Samaritans in battle<br />c. restoring the monarchy<br />d. teaching the law to the returning exiles</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">10.<span style=""> </span>Which of the following statements is found in Ecclesiastes?<br />a. "All this I have tested by wisdom; I said, 'I will be wise' but is was far from me."<br />b. "Like a dog that returns to its vomit is a fool who reverts to his folly."<br />c. "Praise the Lord! Praise God in his sanctuary."<br />d. "<st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Zion</st1:place></st1:City> stretches out her hands, but there is no one to comfort her."</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">11.<span style=""> </span>Ruth deliberately presents herself at the<br />a. garden gate<br />b. city gate<br />c. road to <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Moab</st1:place></st1:country-region><br />d. threshing floor<br />e. home of Naomi</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">12.<span style=""> </span>The writer of Chronicles condemns Saul for seeking guidance from a<br />a. prophet<br />b. king<br />c. medium<br />d. priest</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">13. The Persian decree permitting the reconstruction of the <st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on">Jerusalem</st1:PlaceName> <st1:placetype st="on">Temple</st1:PlaceType></st1:place> may be found in the Book of:<br />a. Daniel<br />b. Ezra<br />c. 2 Kings<br />d. 2 Chronicles</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">14.<span style=""> </span>What was Nehemiah's role in <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Susa</st1:place></st1:City>?<br />a. eunuch<br />b. scribe of Yahweh<br />c. cupbearer to the king<br />d. ambassador from <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Judah</st1:place></st1:country-region></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">15.<span style=""> </span>How were the words, which Daniel interpreted ("MENE, MENE, TEKEL, PARSIN"), conveyed?<br />a. spoken by a messenger of God<br />b. spoken by Daniel<br />c. read by a eunuch<br />d. written on a wall</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p></o:p>Short Answer:</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">1.<span style=""> </span>The Song of Songs has been interpreted as God's love for <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Israel</st1:place></st1:country-region> or Christ's love for the Church.<span style=""> </span>What is your evaluation of that interpretation?<span style=""> </span></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">2. The story of Esther is the reason for the Festival of Purim.<span style=""> </span>Describe this festival. </span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">3.<span style=""> </span>Nehemiah condemned the powerful for charging interest and thereby keeping other Jews indebted and in poverty.<span style=""> </span>Can you think of similar situations today?<span style=""> </span>What does it mean when we say "Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors?" </span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">4. How are the stories in Chronicles different from the stories in Samuel and Kings? </span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">5. What quality does Ruth possess that makes her respected?</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">Longer Answer:</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">Who caused "bitter tears" to "flood her cheeks?" (Lamentations 1:2)<span style=""> </span>Do you think it is psychologically healthy to believe in a punitive God?<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span>Why or why not?<span style=""> </span></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249594162307875182.post-15039877048183742622008-01-27T15:03:00.000-08:002008-01-27T15:06:54.683-08:00May Quiz (Poetic Literature)<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">May Quiz on the Poetic Literature (Psalms, Proverbs, Job)</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">1.</span><span style=";font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;">Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar all appear in which book?<br />a. Job<br />b. Psalms<br />c. Ecclesiastes<br />d. Song of Solomon<br /><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">2.</span><span style=";font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;">How is the following verse from Psalm 46 completed: "God is our ________, a very present help in trouble?<br />a. hope and confidence<br />b. redeemer and friend<br />c. refuge and strength<br />d. rock and fortress</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">3. Which words conclude the following verse from the book of Psalms: "As a deer longs from flowing streams,..."<br />a. "so my heart thirsts for righteousness."<br />b. "so my soul longs for you, O God."<br />c. "so longs a man for the wife of his youth."<br />d. "so a lion longs for his prey."</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">4. With what are the last six psalms of the Psalter concerned?<br />a. deliverance from evil people<br />b. the love of the law<br />c. the praise of God<br />d. the smiting of <st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">Israel</st1:country-region></st1:place>'s enemies</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">5.</span><span style=";font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;">In Psalm 14 and 53, how is the following saying completed: “Fools say in their hearts, ‘There is no…’”?</span><span style=";font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br />a. God.<br />b. justice.<br />c. mercy.<br />d. salvation</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">6.</span><span style=";font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;">Which statement does Proverbs 31 NOT include in its description of a “capable wife”?</span><span style=";font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br />a. “Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.”<br />b. “For her love is better than wine, her anointing oils are fragrant.”<br />c. “Her children rise up and call her happy.”<br />d. “She opens her mouth with wisdom and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.”</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">7.</span><span style=";font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;">Which words follow this verse from the book of Psalms: “How very good and pleasant it is when kindred live together in unity”?</span><span style=";font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br />a. “…but a contentious woman breeds strife.”<br />b. “…working vindication and justice for all who are oppressed.”<br />c. “…but all day long my enemies taunt me.”<br />d. “…it is like the precious oil on the head.”</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">8.</span><span style=";font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;">“For I know that my Redeemer lives, and that at last he will stand upon the earth” is found in which book?</span><span style=";font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br />a. Job<br />b. Psalms<br />c. Proverbs<br />d. Ecclesiastes</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">9.</span><span style=";font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;">Which of the following completes the quotation from Proverbs: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of . . . “?<br />a. blessing<br />b. humility<br />c. wisdom<br />d. worship</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">10.</span><span style=";font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;">Which of the following completes the challenge of Satan to God regarding Job: “stretch out your hand now and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will…”?<br />a. be made whole<br />b. curse you to your face<br />c. proclaim your presence<br />d. question your mercy</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">11.</span><span style=";font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;">Which of the following completes the quotation from Proverbs: “Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old, he will…”?<br />a. learn the ways of God<br />b. not depart from it<br />c. not lack for friends<br />d. praise you</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">12.</span><span style=";font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;">Which of the following completes the quotation from Psalms:</span><span style=";font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;">"For as the heavens are high above the earth..."?<br />a. He has not dealt with us according to our sins<br />b. So great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him<br />c. So the Lord remembers that we are dust<br />d. The Lord works vindication and justice for all who are oppressed</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">13.</span><span style=";font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;">In the book of Job, who says, "Do you still persist in your integrity?</span><span style=";font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;">Curse God ad die"?<br />a. Elihu<br />b. Job's wife<br />c. One of Job's daughters<br />d. Zophar</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">14.</span><span style=";font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;">"They are like trees planted by streams of water" refers to which of the following?<br />a. Those who persevere against injustice<br />b. God and the heavenly hosts<br />c. Righteous kings<br />d. Those who do not follow the advice of the wicked</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">15.</span><span style=";font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;">"O Lord, our Sovereign, how majestic is your name in all the earth" begins and ends the psalm that also contains which of the following statements?<br />a. "May the Lord cut off all flattering lips."<br />b. "The enemy has vanished in everlasting ruin."<br />c. "The Lord is in his <st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on">Holy</st1:placename> <st1:placetype st="on">Temple</st1:placetype></st1:place>."<br />d. "What are human beings that you are mindful of them?"</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">16. About whom is the following said: "Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace"?<br />a. Ecclesiastes' wife<br />b. Job's wife<br />c. The Queen of <st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">Sheba</st1:country-region></st1:place><br />d. Wisdom</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">Short Answer:<br /><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">1.</span><span style=";font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;">Proverbs are truisms or sayings to live by.</span><span style=";font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;">What proverb or proverbs (not necessarily from the book of <i style="">Proverbs</i>) do you remember from a parent or other important adult?</span><span style=";font-size:130%;" > </span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">2.</span><span style=";font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;">What are the names of Job's three friends and what are their explanations for Job's misery?</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">3. Give your best answer to the question:</span><span style=";font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;">"Why do bad things happen to good people?"</span><span style=";font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;">or to put it another way, “What is your answer to Job?”</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">4.</span><span style=";font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;">Many times in the Psalms, the psalmist prays for the destruction of enemies.</span><span style=";font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;">Do you think Psalm 137:9 has a place in Holy Scripture?</span><span style=";font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;">Explain.</span><span style=";font-size:130%;" > </span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">Longer Answer:</span><span style=";font-size:130%;" > </span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">Write a Psalm of your own:</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p><span style=""> </span></p>John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249594162307875182.post-9147232809366095652008-01-27T14:56:00.000-08:002008-01-27T14:59:49.248-08:00April Quiz (Minor Prophets)<p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">April Quiz on the Minor Prophets (Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi)</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">1. Which of the following groups of prophets prophesied in <st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">Judah</st1:country-region></st1:place> before the exile?<span style=""> </span><br />a. Ezekiel, Micah, and Hosea<br />b. Isaiah, Zephaniah, and Jeremiah<br />c. Zechariah, Malachi, and Amos<br />d. Joel, Obadiah, and Haggai<br /><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">2. How does the prophet Micah answer the question: “What does the Lord require of you?”<span style=""> </span><br />a. “I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.”<br />b. “Let justice roll down like waters and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.”<br />c. “Rend your hearts and not your clothing. Return to the Lord, your God, for he is gracious and merciful.”<br />d. “To do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God.”</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">3. Which prophet was directed by God to name his children “Jezreel,” “Not pitied,” and “Not my people”?<span style=""> </span><br />a. Amos<br />b. Ezekiel<br />c. Hosea<br />d. Joel</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">4. “Rejoice greatly, O daughter <st1:place st="on"><st1:city st="on">Zion</st1:City></st1:place>! Shout aloud, O daughter <st1:place st="on"><st1:city st="on">Jerusalem</st1:City></st1:place>! Lo, your king comes to you; triumphant and victorious is he, humble and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.” This is found in which book?<span style=""> </span><br />a. Joel<br />b. Haggai<br />c. Zechariah<br />d. Malachi</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">5. Which prophet was commanded by God: “Go, take for yourself a wife of whoredom”?<span style=""> </span><br />a. Amos<br />b. Hosea<br />c. Joel<br />d. Micah</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">6. Which prophetic book envisions a future in which “your sons and daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions”?<span style=""> </span><br />a. Joel<br />b. Haggai<br />c. Zechariah<br />d. Malachi</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">7. In which book does the following appear: “I hate, I despise your festivals, and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies… But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream”?<span style=""> </span><br />a. Isaiah<br />b. Jeremiah<br />c. Joel<br />d. Amos</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">8. What was Jonah’s message to <st1:place st="on"><st1:city st="on">Nineveh</st1:City></st1:place>?<br />a. a threat of destruction if they did not repent<br />b. a warning to flee from the wrath to come<br />c. an offer of forgiveness if they would repent<br />d. an announcement that the city will be overthrown</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">9. Which books contain the following: “They shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks”?<br />a. Daniel and Joel<br />b. Hosea and Jeremiah<br />c. Jonah and Amos<br />d. Micah and Isaiah</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">10. The immanent approach of ‘the great day of the Lord’ is a major theme in which prophetic book?<br />a. Nahum<br />b. Habakkuk<br />c. Zephaniah<br />d. Haggai</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">11. Which prophet does the Lord command to bake a barley cake over human dung and to eat it in the sight of the people if <st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">Israel</st1:country-region></st1:place>?<br />a. Obadiah<br />b. Ezekiel<br />c. Jeremiah<br />d. Hezekiah</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">12. Amos prophesied during the reign of which king of <st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">Israel</st1:country-region></st1:place>?<br />a. David<br />b. Jeroboam II<br />c. Mannasseh<br />d. Solomon</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">13. "See, I am sending my messenger to prepare the way before me, and the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple.<span style=""> </span>The messenger of the covenant in whom you delight. . ." is found in which book?<br />a. Daniel<br />b. Obadiah<br />c. Nahum<br />d. Malachi</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">14. "But you, O Bethlehem of Ephrathah...from you shall come forth for me one who is to rule in <st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">Israel</st1:country-region></st1:place>" is found in which of the following books?<br />a. Habakkuk<br />b. Haggai<br />c. Joel<br />d. Micah</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">15. During whose reign did Haggai appear as a prophet?<br />a. Darius's<br />b. Hezekiah's<br />c. Josiah's<br />d. Nebuchadnezzar's</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">Two Longer Answers:</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">1.<span style=""> </span>For each of the 12 prophets, determine from the book's introduction and the content of the book (and any other resources if you have them):</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">a) the time period the book is written and/or set...</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">b) the people (ie. Northern kingdom, southern kingdom, common folk, kings, people of <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Israel</st1:place></st1:country-region> in general) to whom the prophet is speaking... </span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">c) the issue or issues the prophet is addressing...</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">d) a one or two sentence summary (in your words) of the prophet's central message...</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">e) choose a symbol or metaphor from the prophet to help you remember the message…</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p style="font-family: arial;"></o:p><o:p style="font-family: arial;"></o:p><o:p style="font-family: arial;"></o:p><o:p style="font-family: arial;"></o:p><o:p style="font-family: arial;"></o:p><o:p style="font-family: arial;"></o:p><o:p style="font-family: arial;"></o:p><o:p style="font-family: arial;"></o:p><br /><br /><br /><br /></span> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">2. Imagine that God has called you to prophesy. What word has God given you to speak to the Church, to the nation, to a particular group of people, to a specific issue, to yourself, etc. Pick a context then speak the Word! Write your oracle below. Be brave. Everyone has at least one sermon inside them!</span><span style=""><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7249594162307875182.post-65221997015062737442008-01-27T14:52:00.000-08:002008-01-27T14:55:37.104-08:00March Quiz (Major Prophets)<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">March Quiz on the Major Prophets (Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel)</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">1.<span style=""> </span>Isaiah is associated with which location?<br />a. <st1:place st="on"><st1:city st="on">Damascus</st1:City></st1:place><br />b. <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Jerusalem</st1:place></st1:City><br />c. <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Samaria</st1:place></st1:City><br />d. Sinai</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p><br />2.<span style=""> </span>In Isaiah 7, what is Ahaz's response to the Lord's demand to ask for a sign "deep as Sheol or high as heaven"?<br />a. To challenge Isaiah<br />b. To refuse to ask for a sign<br />c. To request a sign<br />d. To walk away in anger</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p><br />3.<span style=""> </span>When did Ezekiel's visions occur?<br />a. Before the Babylonian invasion<br />b. During the Babylonian exile<br />c. Immediately following the fall of <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Samaria</st1:place></st1:City> and the northern kingdom<br />d. Shortly after Solomon's death, when the kingdom was divided</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">4.<span style=""> </span>What interpretation is given to Ezekiel's vision of the valley filled with dry bones?<br />a. A new covenant will be written on the heart.<br />b. The exiles will be brought back to the land.<br />c. The armies led by Gog will be totally destroyed.<br />d. This is the valley of decision.</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p></o:p>5.<span style=""> </span>“Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations” is found in which chapter?<br />a. Isaiah 9<br />b. Isaiah 24<br />c. Isaiah 42<br />d. Isaiah 56</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> <br /></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">6.<span style=""> </span>Who was Maher-shalal-hash-baz?<br />a. A priest of <st1:place st="on">Assyria</st1:place> against whom Isaiah contended<br />b. A son of Isaiah<br />c. One who cried for the destruction of <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Samaria</st1:place></st1:City><br />d. The son of Baladan, king of <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Babylon</st1:place></st1:City></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p><br />7.<span style=""> </span>According to Isaiah, what event ends the Babylonian exile?<br />a. The victory of King Josiah of <st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">Judah</st1:country-region></st1:place><br />b. The victory of Alexander the Great<br />c. The victory of Pharaoh Neco of <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Egypt</st1:place></st1:country-region><br />d. The victory of Cyrus of Persia</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p><br />8.<span style=""> </span>What was the point of these symbolic actions of Ezekiel: lying on his left side 40 days, then on his right side 40 days; shaving off his hair and beard; digging through a wall and crawling through it with his baggage?<br />a. to attract attention to his words; the actions themselves had no meaning<br />b. to demonstrate the irrationality of <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Israel</st1:place></st1:country-region>'s behavior<br />c. to participate symbolically in the fall of <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Jerusalem</st1:place></st1:City> and exile<br />d. to purify himself from <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Israel</st1:place></st1:country-region>'s uncleanness</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">9.<span style=""> </span>What statement describes what Isaiah says about the wolf and lamb, the leopard and kid, the calf and lion?<br />a. "Be fruitful and multiply."<br />b. "They will not hurt or destroy on all my holy mountain."<br />c. "Wild oxen shall fall with them, and young steers with the mighty bulls."<br />d. "You have given them dominion over the works of your hands."</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">10.<span style=""> </span>What was the name of Jeremiah's scribe?<br />a. Balaam<br />b. Barnabas<br />c. Baruch<br />d. Benjamin</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">11.<span style=""> </span>By which river did Ezekiel sit among the exiles?<br />a. <st1:place st="on">Tigris</st1:place><br />b. <st1:place st="on">Euphrates</st1:place><br />c. Chebar<br />d. <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Jordan</st1:place></st1:country-region></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">12.<span style=""> </span>Where is <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Israel</st1:place></st1:country-region> referred to repeatedly as the servant of the Lord?<br />a. Isaiah 1-12<br />b. Isaiah 13-23<br />c. Isaiah 40-55<br />d. Isaiah 56-66</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">13. Who brought Jeremiah from imprisonment to ask him, "Is there any word from the Lord?"<br />a. Baruch<br />b. Gedaliah<br />c. the princes of <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Judah</st1:place></st1:country-region><br />d. Zedekiah</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">14. According to Isaiah, how would Sennacherib, king of <st1:place st="on">Assyria</st1:place>, die?<br />a. of a fall from a horse<br />b. of the same illness that threatened Hezekiah<br />c. by the sword in his own land<br />d. in the siege of <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Jerusalem</st1:place></st1:City></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> <br /></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">Two Longer Answers:</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p><br /></o:p><br />1.<span style=""> </span>For each prophet, <i style="">Isaiah, Jeremiah, </i>and<i style=""> Ezekiel</i>, answer the following:</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">a) What is the time period?</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">b) To whom is each speaking?</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">c) What issue and/or even is each addressing?</span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p style="font-family: arial;"></o:p><o:p style="font-family: arial;"><br /><br /></o:p></span> <p style="font-family: arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p><br /></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">2.<span style=""> </span>Do you think there is a relationship between a nation's prosperity/peace and its righteousness/justice?</span></p><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style=""><br /></p><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style=""><br /></p><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style=""><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style=""><br /></p>John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0