The Lectionary and Scripture Interpretation during Lent Jeremiah 31:31-34 Background of the book Verse 31 speaks of a “new covenant” – the only place this phrase is used in the Old Testament. Most scholars see the new covenant in this passage as being very similar to the one that came before it in Exodus 19-24. READ MORE
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The content on this website is not intended to be a scholarly work, with all the proper attributions. When I started developing this content in 2018, my intent was to synthesize many different commentaries and points of view into a digestible format for a small group Bible study. I was not always (if ever!) careful READ MORE
parable
The Greek word parable comes from para – alongside and bole – to cast. A parable is something (like an image or metaphor) “cast alongside” something else. Scholar C.H. Dodd says the definition of a parable is “a metaphor or simile drawn from nature or everyday life, arresting the hearer by its vividness or strangeness, READ MORE
4th Sunday of Lent Year B
The Lectionary and Scripture Interpretation during Lent This is Laetare Sunday, rejoice! “Laetare” comes from the entrance antiphon from Isaiah 66:10: “Rejoice O Jerusalem.” Rejoicing might feel a little weird here in the middle of Lent. But I love this reminder that the season of Lent is preparing us for the joy of Easter, the READ MORE
Amos
Genre The book is classified among the prophetic literature, and is included among the twelve minor prophets Date Amos prophesied in the last half of the 700sBC – a time of unimaginable material prosperity for Israel. But also a time of social and political corruption. Themes
Wisdom
Name This book in the Latin Vulgate is titled “The Book of Wisdom.” In the Greek Septuagint, it is titled “The Wisdom of Solomon.” Genre This book is wisdom literature, which gives rules of proper conduct, usually in the form of maxims, pithy insights, and “words to live by.” Wisdom literature attempts to show the READ MORE
Ezekiel
Ezekiel is a challenging book as it combines prophecy, legal reflections, prose, poetry, extremely detailed historical descriptions, highly imaginative mythological allusions, judgments, wild visions, sermonizing, and vivid drama. In case you got lost in that description, I am talking about a book of the Bible, not the nightly news! Ezekiel’s ministry was consumed with helping READ MORE
2 Corinthians
Author Paul is the undisputed author of this letter. Some scholars hold that 6:14-7:1 is a post-Pauline insertion into the letter. Historical Setting Corinth was a big city crossroads with lots of ethnicities and religions – a melting pot. There was a high population of freed slaves who came to make their fortune and they READ MORE
3rd Sunday of Lent Year B
The Lectionary and Scripture Interpretation during Lent Exodus 20:1-17 Background of the book Today we read the “decalogue” – the ten words/dictums/commandments. These form the initial stipulation of God’s covenant with the nation of Israel. The commandments are arranged in two groups:1. Duties to God. Each commandment in this group contains the phrase “the LORD READ MORE
2nd Sunday of Lent Year B
The Lectionary and Scripture Interpretation during Lent Genesis 22:1-2, 9a, 10-13, 15-18 Background of the book This is a hard story to grapple with. It invites us to ask hard questions. What are we to make out of a God who plays with a faithful servant who has done everything asked of him, almost as READ MORE