Peter KrolThis article was originally three separate articles that ran in Bible Study Magazine in 2022. We’ve combined them all in one location for easy access. You can use the table of contents below to navigate the content. Table of contentsPart 1:...
Graham ColeThe following is a short excerpt from the already short What Is the Bible? by Graham Cole—one of 17 short books on many current topics in the Questions for Restless Minds series, edited by D.A. Carson. In it, Cole describes the way two different men...
Scott CorbinHow did the church fathers read the Bible? The church fathers read the Bible as the written word of God, given to the church through the prophets and apostles. Everything in it proclaimed Jesus Christ and the gospel of eternal salvation. Sometimes...
Katie FrenchWhen his childhood dream of being a major league baseball player bit bitter dust, Jim Hamilton realized he’d have to pick another career. He found a new passion: biblical theology, a passion that took off during his studies at The Southern Baptist...
Murray J. HarrisWord order can often be significant, especially when it is surprising. For example, Paul’s letter to the Christian believers in Rome is the flagship of the Pauline fleet. The apostle greatly treasured his special calling to be an apostle that came...
Bible Study MagazineIn the new book Faith in the Wilderness: Words of Exhortation from the Chinese Church (Kirkdale Press, 2022; foreword by Tim Keller), Chinese house church pastor Paul Peng urges Western Christians to look to the future “sea of glass” (Revelation 15)...
Robby LockettI love the New Testament letters. From Paul’s discourse on adoption in Romans to his discussions of love and resurrection in 1 Corinthians; from his powerful defense of gentile Christians and Christ’s finished work in Galatians to his wonderful...
David P. BarshingerWe are familiar with God’s calls in Scripture to be marked by a tender heart. Paul commands Christians, “Be … tenderhearted” (Eph 4:32), and Peter tells believers to “have … a tender heart” (1 Pet 3:8). These teachings clearly show what God expects...
In this excerpt adapted from the March/April issue of Bible Study Magazine, Jared Garcia explores the terrible events leading to Jesus’ resurrection—and why we can call his crucifixion the “glory of the cross.” *** Just days before his death, Jesus...
Dean H. TaylorWithout unity, a church will not grow. According to Paul’s outline of church life in Ephesians 4, unity among believers is essential to a thriving church. His line of thought from verses 1–3 (“be diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the...
Whenever my laptop or smartphone gets stuck, I always hear the same preliminary advice: try to reboot. For some reason, shutting the technology down and starting it back up again tends to shake things loose and get them back where they’re supposed...
Kirk E. MillerOne of the privileges I have as a pastor is getting to meet new people almost weekly. When we meet someone new, like when folks visit my church, there’s a set of questions we typically ask: What’s your name? Where are you from? What do you do? These...
Rebecca Van NoordDr. Tony Evans is passionate about discipleship that applies the whole of the Bible to all of life. The founder and pastor of Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship first found this passion for making disciples while attending Bible college and seminary during...
Mwindula MbeweWhy did John call Jesus “the Logos”? This question has puzzled biblical scholars for millennia; it is not a debate that is easily settled. One of the most compelling views is that John borrowed this idea from Greek thought. But theologians across...
Nick KennicottLuke 24 is about Jesus’s resurrection, his post-resurrection interaction with his disciples, and his ascension to heaven. On two different occasions during this chapter Jesus appears to his followers, first to Cleopas and his friend on the road to...
Randy A. BrownEveryone intuitively understands that disabilities can be hard to live with. They can even put a strain on your faith—some disabilities more than others. Imagine, then, being born without arms. This is the affliction God gave to Daniel...
And Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” And they cast lots to divide his garments. (Luke 23:34 ESV) This first of the seven sayings of Jesus on the cross was uttered probably shortly after he had been crushed to the...
It is not uncommon when reading the Bible to run into language or imagery that we don’t readily understand. Just spend some time in the Prophets or Revelation. We may view the difficulties in Scripture as deterrents to engaging it (even if we don’t...
As a first-time counselor at a Christian camp this past summer, I recognized the importance of having a full “toolbox” to draw from while speaking to the campers entrusted to my care. There were several times when I could quote a verse but failed to...
Mark WardNot long ago, the Dead Sea Scrolls were locked away in places where only a select few scholars could see them. That situation actually lasted for decades. The deep end Now, you can see the scrolls for yourself with all the helps you’re accustomed to...
Confidently. That’s the answer. If you’re going to get it wrong, along with Luther I say, Sin boldly. But that’s just it: when it comes to Bible words, there are fewer pronunciation sins than you think. Now… there are some. I was just listening to a...
Why are we here, and what is our purpose? What on earth went wrong, and why are things so messed up? How can we go about making this wrecked world a better place? These are some of the most important questions a person can ask. If we’re willing to...
The Dead Sea Scrolls have impacted our understanding of the history of the biblical text—learn how in this article by Jeremy D. Lyon.
Ron W. Lindo Jr.The book of Psalms is probably the most famous book in the Christian canon. Verses from the Psalms can be found in private letters, on Christian t-shirts, and even on shareable internet memes. However, the notoriety of the Psalms is not new. This...
John D. MeadeOur English translations differ for two basic reasons: (1) underlying text and (2) translation philosophy. I’ll start with the latter. “Formal” (sometimes called literal) translations tend to retain the forms of the original languages even when that...
Ancient biblical scrolls discovered in Qumran Between late 1946 and early 1947, Muhammed edh-Dhib, a shepherd boy of the Ta’amireh Bedouin tribe searched for a lost goat in the desert hills of Qumran. As he searched alongside the Dead Sea, he...
Zach HollifieldAlmost a year to the day after becoming a Christian, I fell to a familiar sin that had ruled me prior to conversion. At that moment God’s presence vanished. I was left wondering if I had lost my salvation—if I had been saved in the first place. The...
One likely date for the crucifixion of Jesus is Friday, April 6, AD 30. If we assume this chronology, we can tentatively reconstruct Jesus’ movements for the first part of his final week, including his cursing of the fig tree and its subsequent...
In Psalm 19, David celebrates God’s revelation first in creation and then in Scripture. He describes in poetic language the nature of God’s word as perfect, right, and pure, and the function of God’s word as reviving, rejoicing, and enlightening the...
In this excerpt adapted from the November/December issue of Bible Study Magazine, Stephen G. Dempster, author of Dominion and Dynasty: A Biblical Theology of the Hebrew Bible, provides a big-picture overview of the story of the Old Testament.