Similar Posts
Depending on Others and Understanding
I frequently encounter people who are afraid of depending on scholars for their knowledge of the Bible. I understand this fear. One thing that got me into studying biblical languages was the desire to know for myself, without having someone else translate. But when I had learned the languages, I found that one had to…
Sacrifice then and Now
Byhneufeld
What meaning is evoked in people’s minds by the word “sacrifice?” One of the things I like to do when teaching is to simply write a word on the board that is commonly used in Biblical and/or Christian discourse and get people to give me various things that this word means to them. I try…
An Example of Archaic Words – 1 Samuel 9:9
Byhneufeld
In a comment to a previous post, someone brought up the case of Saul and the seer. In this passage we have the parenthetical note following the reference by one of the characters to a seer, indicating that a prophet was formerly called a seer. This was provided as an example of how to handle…
Pious but Stupid Statements about the Bible
I was out driving today and saw a church sign with the statement, “The Bible – Your First Notebook.” What exactly does that mean? I see almost nothing about the Bible that makes it like a notebook. It’s still better than the common statement—at least I heard it frequently when I was younger—that the Bible…
Who Do You Need to Be/Read to Understand the Bible
Byhneufeld
J. K. Gayle takes on John Hobbins’ question. Not precisely answers it. He takes it on. I have this post on my list of posts I want to respond to, but I haven’t yet had time. Let me simply state that there are few forms of writing to which I react more negatively than universally…