think hard, think well

I’ve been having a long debate about hermeneutics and the NT’s use of the OT over at Reformed Forum. Here’s my most recent (somewhat lengthy!) comment.

A friend asked me whether I think it’s of value to have debates like these. I think it is, because the label "Reformed" is worth contending for. Needless to say, I think my friends over at RF are mistaken on this issue and not doing justice to the Reformed tradition. But I hope we can acknowledge that we all still fall within the purview of Reformed thought.

I was at work this afternoon when the earthquake hit. Like must East-Coast folks, my first reaction was, “That can’t be an earthquake–we don’t have earthquakes out here!” I’ve felt a few earthquakes during my visits to California, and it’s always quite unsettling. Thankfully, there was no damage in my area. The big Merck manufacturing and testing facility down the street evacuated as a precaution, but there was apparently no harm done. I’m still waiting to hear about the extent of the damage further south.

Geoff stopped by my desk on his way home and made a joke about the signs of “the end times.” That made me think: according to the New Testament, we’ve been in “the end times” for 1,982 years now, and the earth is still groaning in travail, awaiting the revelation of the sons of God (Rom 8).

מרנא תא

Come quickly, Lord Jesus.

I’m listening through Genesis at work, and I re-read a quotation from Adele Berlin:

"Narrative is a form of representation. Abraham in Genesis is not a real person any more than a painting of an apple is a real fruit. This is not a judgment on the existence of a historical Abraham any more than it is a statement about the existence of apples." (Poetics and Interpretation of Biblical Narrative [Eisenbrauns, 1983], 13.)

That said, most historical critical scholarship, including so-called "maximalists," deny the historicity of the patriarchal narratives of the Hebrew Bible (Gen 12-50), based primarily on the lack of archaeological evidence.

My question is this: why in the heck would we expect to find archaeological or documentary evidence of a small clan of a few hundred bedouin wandering around the ANE in the first half of the second millennium BCE?

Yes, there are cultural and geographical anachronisms in Genesis. But those don’t disprove the essential historicity of those narratives.

Thoughts?

“Two Kings” is a sermon I preached at Preakness Valley United Reformed Church in Wayne, NJ, on July 31, 2011. The text is Isaiah 7.

Here is the MP3 audio (29:33, 27.7 MB), and an excerpt:

Ahaz is a type of Adam: he receives a direct word from God with a promise, but he does not trust God, and is then overwhelmed by the consequences of his sin.  Hezekiah is a type of Christ: he calls on God in time of trouble, receives a direct word from God with a promise, and then his enemies are overwhelmed.

Likewise, Isaiah’s sons are types of Christ.  Remember Isaiah’s older son from 7:3, named “She’ar Yashuv”?  This means, “A remnant will return.”  Built into God’s promise of judgment was a promise of forgiveness and restoration that would ultimately come through God’s own son, Jesus.  Isaiah’s second son, Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz, is also a type of Christ, whose birth is a sign from God.

You may also be interested in my previous sermons on Isaiah 5 and Isaiah 6.

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Audio and text: ©2011 by Benjamin D. Giffone. Reproduction and distribution are permitted, providing that the author is properly credited and that no fee is charged.

“Approaching the Throne” is a sermon I preached at Preakness Valley United Reformed Church in Wayne, NJ, on July 31, 2011. The text is Hebrews 10:19-31.

Here is the MP3 audio (30:29, 28.6MB), and an excerpt:

We avoid people when we know we’ve done something to offend or hurt them.  Just being around them reminds us of how much they dislike us and how guilty we feel.

In these verses, we are told to feel exactly the opposite way when it comes to approaching God.  Let’s not miss the extremely shocking aspect of this image: no one could be more holy, more pure, more clean, more powerful, more wonderful or more worthy of respect and honor, than God himself, the Creator of the universe!  No one could be less worthy of approaching God than sinners—sinners like me, and you, and everyone else—created beings who have rebelled against our Creator.  And yet, we are told that we must enter God’s presence with confidence and full assurance—because of Jesus.  We enter “by the blood of Jesus,” “sprinkled on our hearts,” “through his body,” “washed clean with pure water.”  The perfect, ultimate sacrifice of Jesus, God’s only Son, has made a way for us to see God—and for God to see us, his people.

Audio and text: ©2011 by Benjamin D. Giffone. Reproduction and distribution are permitted, providing that the author is properly credited and that no fee is charged.

I noticed a literary connection in the court-story books of the Writings…

In Esther 4:

Then Esther spoke to Hathach and commanded him to go to Mordecai and say, “All the king’s servants and the people of the king’s provinces know that if any man or woman goes to the king inside the inner court without being called, there is but one law—to be put to death, except the one to whom the king holds out the golden scepter so that he may live. But as for me, I have not been called to come in to the king these thirty days.” (Est 4:10-11)

And in Daniel 2:

The king answered and said, “I know with certainty that you are trying to gain time, because you see that the word from me is firm—if you do not make the dream known to me, there is but one sentence for you. You have agreed to speak lying and corrupt words before me till the times change. Therefore tell me the dream, and I shall know that you can show me its interpretation.” (Dan 2:8-9)

One is in Hebrew and the other in Aramaic, but the roots are cognates and the syntax is similar:

I just thought that was cool. Can you think of another similar instance, either in the HB or in other ANE lit?

I’ve been light in the blogging department lately. July has turned out to be quite a busy month.

We went to Montreal from Canada Day to Independence Day (July 1-4) to visit Josh and Bekah. Pictures are up on Facebook.

When we got back, I immersed myself in ANE city laments, working on chapter 3 of my thesis, which is due on August 11.

I also have prepared two sermons for tomorrow’s services at Preakness Valley URC in Wayne, NJ. This might be one of the last times I go up there for a while, because they finally have a new pastor! He moves from Michigan and will be installed at a service on September 9, d.v. But I hope to still visit these dear brothers and sisters from time to time as there is need. I hope to post the audio of the sermons sometime this week.

Last week we celebrated three family birthdays: Daniel (7/25), Corrie’s Aunt Becki (7/27), and my Grandpa Frank (7/27). Daniel also was baptized on Sunday, and we had a lovely party afterward at my in-laws’ to celebrate.

Hopefully I’ll be able to provide some better content on the blog in the weeks to come. I just got some feedback from Dr. Jonker on my first two chapters, so maybe I’ll post little excerpts for your critique.

In the meantime, have a great summer! (Or winter if you’re in the southern hemisphere.)