The Polemical Pattern of Truth
The purpose of this post is to bring into view how the Northern Kingdom of Israel diverted its loyalty and covenantal obligations from Yahweh to the foreign Baal gods and how the confrontation between Elijah …
The Gates of Babylon
A forthcoming research project about the Neo-Babylonian empire involves quite a lot of preparation. Involving valid and credible source materials that together will help piece together the details of the ancient Mesopotamian civilization that carried …
The Theocratic Anointing
The purpose of this post is to present an up-close look at the matter of theocratic anointing from historical examples given throughout Scripture. A cursory search of the terms “theocratic” and “anointing” from the Internet …
The Consecration of Hē·rěm
As recorded between the books of Joshua and Judges, numerous sites throughout Canaan were conquered. In total, within both books, 31 sites were destroyed, or a specific king was defeated1 to demonstrate Israel’s growing and …
The Topography of Time
Among various ways of exploring the physical and spiritual geographies of the Ancient Near East, there are two categorical ways to understand the landscape of the Bible topically. Historical and Literary geography studies work together …
The Tapestry of Antiquity
A current Oxford dictionary defines the term “Historiography” as the study of writing about history. The etymological facts from the Greek language support that definition. However, a student of history should generally understand historiography as …
The Evidence of Belief
The purpose of this post is to present an up-close look at the Pharisees of the New Testament and their often-adversarial relationship with Jesus. The sharp differences between Pharisee beliefs and practices stood in sharp …
Incubation of a Kingdom
The book entitled “Backgrounds of Early Christianity” by Everett Ferguson is a comprehensive survey of historiographical topics centered around the Mediterranean world of the first century. While topics span subject matter that primarily concentrated on …
Framework of Prototypical Intent
When following the apostle Paul in the book of Acts during his journeys to Asia Minor, it became apparent there were numerous synagogues he visited. Well before that, extending back into the intertestamental period and …
The Measure of Seven
While doing the research to understand the differences between the Jewish beliefs and practices of the Old Testament and those of the second temple period, I arrived at an area of interest that bears further …
Types & Shadows
Thesis: The OT in the book of Revelation and John’s use of corresponding apocalyptic work in the book of Revelation. The following are presentation notes concerning the literary nature of the book of Revelation, not …
The Scourge of Animosity
In an effort to trace the history of animosity between the Jews and Samaritans, I acknowledge the various alternatives that exist throughout primary and secondary sources. The Jews of ancient Israel did not view the …
The Trauma of an Apocryphon
This week’s reading through 1st and 2nd Maccabees often had me step back to think about what I just read. Throughout the week, I shared some of the details about events that transpired in both …
The Hammer of God
There were numerous outcomes to the transition from the Old Covenant to the New Covenant. All largely magnified during the intertestamental period. A series of overlapping and concurrent losses represented both pronounced and fundamental changes …
Roots of the Nag Hammadi
With the Hellenization of numerous territories throughout the Mediterranean world, ancient Judea, Samaria, Galilee, and Northern Regions of Israel were immersed in Greek culture and philosophical thought. Widespread was Greek philosophy’s influence in places such …
