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There are two patches in Joel’s prophetic  quilt. Scholars do not agree on the editorial history of the book of Joel. Some argue for a ninth century date, while others suggest a Persian period (500- (...)

A mother’s prayer results in an unlikely beginning to kingship. The monarchy of Israel begins with a narrative of despair and humility. Hannah, from Ephraimite country, is a childless wife, thereby making her one of (...)

In Genesis 1-11, the LORD struggled with all humanity to redeem a sinful and violent world. Beginning in Genesis 12, the LORD tried a new approach. God selected and focused on one unlikely family among (...)

Mark’s theology is apocalyptic: Mark believes that history is divided into two ages: (1) the present evil age that God will destroy and replace with (2) a new world in which all things manifest God’s (...)

This Old Testament reading ranks among the most famous of Old Testament texts. Elijah’s flight to the wilderness and his encounter with God in “a still small voice” (KJV, NKJV) is well known. It is (...)

These verses from the Book of Daniel provide the reader with one of the most graphic depictions of God found in the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament (HB/OT) (cf. Isaiah 6; Ezekiel 1; Exodus 33:17-23). In this (...)

Hannah: The woman who gives voice to suffering When we think about the individuals in the biblical text who suffer, Jesus would likely top the list.  From the Garden of Gethsemane where an agitated Jesus (...)

There is an old Saturday Night Live sketch from back in the day in which Chris Farley plays the tropical storm system called “El Niño” as if he were an all-star wrestler. At the end (...)

I hear groans from preachers reading this Sunday’s Gospel. It contains most things that drive the conscientious into a slough of despondence: exorcisms (verse 38); multiple disturbances in the Greek text, footnoted in responsible English (...)

These verses stand near the beginning of part II of Israel’s time of wandering in the wilderness, having just departed from Mt. Sinai (10:11-36:13; see Exodus 15:22-18:27 for part I). The entire book of Numbers (...)