Think Wink.

One of the more favored proof-texts used by those who hold to general/universal redemption is Hebrews 2:9 (NET), “but we see Jesus, who was made lower than the angels for a little while, now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, so that by God’s grace he would experience death on behalf of everyone [ὑπὲρ παντὸς].” The Greek prepositional phrase ὑπὲρ παντὸς is taken by general redemption advocates to mean all people without distinction. However one cannot read through the rest of the chapter with this understanding and escape universalism–the idea that all people will be saved. Just look at what the author of Hebrews calls this group in 2:10-18, “many sons [brought] to glory…the pioneer of their salvation…those being made holy…brothers and sisters…my brothers…the children God has given me” (emphasis mine). If one reads these terms in the same way as “everyone” in 2:9, one cannot escape universalism. Not to mention Jesus is said to propitiate wrath on their behalf. This text just does not affirm the general redemption that many look for it to make it. I would need to see textual warrant for understanding Hebrews 2:9 differently from Hebrews 2:10-18. However, because many of the terms used in this chapter to refer to the beneficiaries/recipients of Jesus work indicate particularity, I do see particular redemption.

Here is how James White puts it.

The Extent of the Atonement

Hebrews in 5 minutes…and Mormon Apologetics

Total Depravity is Totally Biblical

Here is a list of commentaries due out in the coming years. Here are a few that I am most interested in.

Richard Bauckham: Luke, John, Acts, 2 Peter/Jude; I read his book on Jesus and the role of eyewitness testimony in the formation of the gospels to ensure their reliability and liked it, can’t wait to see more of his actual theology.

D.A. Carson: Matthew, Galatians, Hebrews, Johanine Epistles, Revelation; this dude has been busy!

Michael Bird: Colossians, Philemon (both in 2012), and LXX book of I and II Esdras; I love his blog so why not try out his commentaries.

N.T. Wright is putting out a commentary on Galatians which I am very interested to read how he exegetes Galatians, as well as on Malachi and Philippians. G.K. Beale is publishing on Colossians, Philemon, and the Pastorals. Dr. Tom Schreiner is publishing two commentaries on Galatians. I wonder how similar/different they will be from each other? Douglas Moo (of the famous Romans commentary in the NICNT series) is publishing on Galatians and Hebrews–excited. Greek scholar and translator Gordon D. Fee is publishing on I and II Thessalonians as well as Revelation. This looks to be really promising set of commentaries, check it out.

The End For Which God Created The World

God’s Glory and BW3

Preaching to My Youth

Because of the length of this post, I decided to break it into two smaller ones rather than one long one. So please see “To Fulfill What Was Spoken By The LORD 1/2″ to catch up here. I am just going to launch right into the second part of my look at how Jesus’ flight to Egypt fulfills what was spoken by Yahweh in Hosea 11:1. Read more

How Long Oh Lord

Making Sense of a Cruel World.

Reading the Text Rightly

This Christmas, as I reflect on the incarnation narrative in Matthew 2 I find myself guilty of something I didn’t realize: I blindly accepted the prophecies Matthew says Jesus fulfilled as verbal-predictive prophecy concerning Jesus. Sure I didn’t think that they were going to say “Jesus, a.k.a. Yahweh Elohim, born from a woman who has never engaged in sexual activity from the town of Nazareth in Bethlehem during a census ordered by the Roman government when Augustus Caesar was in power.” I always just accepted that the prophecies here were about Jesus. Granted it has been a while since I realized that the “Immanuel” passage was a bit more complex to see how it gets to Jesus but texts like Hosea 11:1 and Jeremiah 31:5 I never really let it sink in. But recently it hit me that I had never tried to work out how these Old Covenant prophecies point the way to Christ given their literary and historical and theological settings. Today I want to just go through Hosea 11:1 and how Jesus going to Egypt is fulfillment of what Yahweh had said through the prophet. Read more

To Fulfill What Was Spoken By The LORD 2/2

How Long Oh Lord

Making Sense of a Cruel World.

This movie looks amazing!!!!!!

Saturday Mornings are Gonna Get REAL Fun Again

The Merc with a Mouth on the Big Screen

Oh Crap, I’m Cyclops.

I thought that the graphic novel was a good read overall. It got kind of quirky and hoaky at points but still good. I think the movie will correct what I didn’t like and keep what I did. Here’s the trailer.

Transformers: The Movie

July 4th and Optimus Prime

Transformers Tonight!

Introduction
In another post on God seeking his own glory, Tom and I had a wonderful discussion on some different texts that really had this issue at heart. One text that came up was Genesis 50:20 which reads,

As for you, you meant to harm me, but God intended it for a good purpose, so he could preserve the lives of many people, as you can see this day. (NET)

To give his take, Tom has written a two-post reply (the second post has yet to be put up as I write this). This is my response to what he wrote. My response is in two areas: a.) textual and b.) theological. I am going to put both responses here in this one post so forgive the length if it gets long. Read more

Something to Chew On

Not So Innocent After All

Pop Culture and Humanity

Most people know that Star Trek is being being released this May to reboot the franchise for the more modern audience. It features new faces with very familiar names to the Star Trek universe. However, how many people knew about this little flick?

Yeah like this past year, I’m pumped for May!!

[Edit: I linked to the Star Trek trailer here just because its sooooo dang good!]

Why Did I Take That Class?

Oh Wow…What am I thinking?

So I was going to post on Matthew’s use of Hosea 11:1 in Matthew 2:15. Before I begon to think about Matthew’s use I wanted to compare the Hebrew and LXX of Hosea 11, trying to see how similar the two are and which one Matthew was using. When I get to that post I will try to argue for which one I think Matthew is using but what caught my eye is how little of the Hebrew I see in the LXX of Hosea 11. Here is my rendering of Hosea 11:1-11 LXX and tell me if that seems like what you read in the Hebrew (English translations follow the Hebrew so I am not going to reproduce a Hebrew translation this post)?

1 Since Israel was an infant and I loved him and out of Egypt I recalled his children. 2 Just as I recalled them so they left me. They sacrificed to the Baalim and offered incense to the carved idols. 3 I bound the feet of Ephraim and took him upon my arm and they didn’t know that I had healed them. 4 In the destruction of people I strecthed them in the bonds of my love and I will be to them as a person who strikes his cheeks and I will watch over him closely and I will be capable with him. 5 Ephraim settled in Egypt and Assour himself was his king because he didn’t want to return. 6 The sword was weak in his cities and put to rest in his hand. They will eat the fruit of their schemes. 7 The people hang in his residence and God will be angered at his precious possessions and will not raise him up. 8 “Ephraim, what will I do you? Will I shield you? Will I do with you like I did with Adama and Seboim? My heart was changed and my sense of regret was disturbed. 9 I will not do according to the wrath of my anger. I will not leave Ephraim to be wiped away because I am deity and not a man, holy among you. I will not go into a city.” 10 I will go after the Lord; as the lion roars he will roar and even the children of the waters will stand still. 11 They will stand like a bird from Egypt and as a dove from the land of Assyria. I will make them stand in their homes, says the Lord.

It starts out okay but man it kinda goes a weird direction for a little while until the very end when it comes back to more of what the Hebrew says. Ya know, there are dynamic translations and man then there is the LXX, sometimes. The general point is there but I have a hard time figuring out what they were doing with the Hebrew here.

To Fulfill What Was Spoken By The LORD 2/2

To Fulfill What Was Spoken By The LORD 1/2

Son, Son, Or Servant and Mark 1:11 Part 3