The scribes and Pharisees were opposed to Jesus and His teaching. Jesus accused them of hypocrisy: 'Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because you close the kingdom of heaven against mankind: for you neither go in yourselves, neither do you allow those entering to have entered’ Mat 23:13. He also exposed the inadequacy of …
Category: Scripture
Academic exegesis
Academic exegesis is that form of interpretation which copies academics or authority figures. The Lord Jesus Christ cut through this in His teaching. Academic exegesis is seen in the translation of several biblical passages. Bible versions are the product of teams of academic translators pooling their collective knowledge to produce a final decision on the …
The majority of mankind will be saved
The majority of mankind will be saved – will you be among them? It is not uncommon to hear the depressing and unbiblical doctrine that only a minority of the human family will arrive in heaven. It is also common to hear the ungodly say that they do not want to go to heaven, which …
Biblical mnemonics
Ps 117: the shortest chapter in the Bible. Ps 119: the longest chapter in the Bible. Ps 118: the middle chapter in the Bible. Ps 118:8 "It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man." 1188/2 = 594. There are 594 chapters before Ps 118 and 594 chapters after it …
The Ark of Noah – and The Unsinkable Dream
I have just finished reading The Unsinkable Dream by Johan Huibers, the Dutchman who has built a full-sized replica of Noah's Ark. Its Dutch title is Let Your Dream Sail. It is a wonderful read about an amazing project with so many lessons that you should simply purchase the book for yourself. The Ark is …
Sermon on Acts 13:26
The Free Offer of the Gospel ‘Men and brethren, children of the stock of Abraham, and whosoever among you fears God, to you is the word of this salvation sent’ Act 13:26. God's salvation is sent to you. The Holy Spirit sends the Gospel to all who hear it and offers salvation freely to them. …
Metaphors and exegesis
Biblical exegesis is a wonderful God-given skill. It enables the exegete to draw out of Scripture the meaning intended by the Holy Spirit, as opposed to imposing on Scripture a meaning that the reader has already determined (eisegesis is reading into Scripture one's own prejudices). There are many principles for exegesis, but one of them …
A summary of the opening chapters of Ezekiel
To understand Scripture, one needs to understand texts and passages in context. So a summary of Scripture chapters can be very useful to help us understand the context. I have been doing so for years for my Bible commentary, an on-going work that will probably be published posthumously. However, this does not prevent extracts coming …
Continue reading A summary of the opening chapters of Ezekiel
Was the rich young ruler actually Saul of Tarsus?
Most of those acquainted with their Bible have heard about the rich, young ruler. He came to Jesus and asked him what he should do to inherit eternal life. He received the surprising answer - to sell all that he had and follow Christ! At this, he went away sad because he had great possessions. …
Continue reading Was the rich young ruler actually Saul of Tarsus?
Exegesis and eisegesis
As a divinity student in 1980 I came across the term 'exegesis' in reference to the exegesis of Scripture. It means 'drawing out' the meaning of a written text and Scripture in particular. I was aware of the common problem of people reading into Scripture their own opinion and thus putting into Scripture something that …
