A Beautiful Place to Write Beautiful Thoughts Each notebook features a unique embossed cover hand painted by Ruth Chou Simons, the bestselling author and artist of GraceLaced and Beholding and Becoming In this pack of 3, each notebook is 6" x 8 1/2" and features a lay-flat sewn binding and 64 creamy pages lined with warm gray ink With covers featuring gold foil detail and buckram grain texture, these luxe notebooks are perfect for personal use or for gifting to loved ones

This volume in the popular Interpretation series presents the book of Leviticus. It focuses on the history of Israel during this time when Israel's life was marked by the various ritual sacrifices and observances commanded by God for the ordering of the nation's life.

Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching is a distinctive resource for those who interpret the Bible in the church. Planned and written specifically for teaching and preaching needs, this critically acclaimed biblical commentary is a major contribution to scholarship and ministry.

A year's worth of delightful reflections on dogs known and loved, each leading into a consideration of some aspect of God's character. Stephen Poxon says, "Within what I hope will become this dog-eared work, 365 shaggy dog stories are homed with verses of Scripture to encourage, inform and possibly even amuse. Use them as a dog might treat a puddle - to gaze upon with curiosity, to dip into, or to have a jolly good splash around. It might be that a line from a reflection will lead you towards a deeper concept. It might be that a thought provides a timely contemplation for the day, relevant to your circumstances and concerns. "It is my prayer, as a dog devotee who tries to follow God, that these readings bring reminders of His love. As the seasons change and experiences vary between good, bad and indifferent, may our relationship with a loving Heavenly Father remain a rewarding constant."

'We are the Beloved. We are intimately loved long before our parents, teachers, spouses, children and friends loved or wounded us. That's the truth of our lives. That's the truth I want you to claim for yourself. That's the truth spoken by the voice that says, "You are my Beloved."' - Henri Nouwen, Life of the Beloved Henri Nouwen, priest, professor and writer, devoted much of his later ministry to emphasising the singular concept of our identity as the Beloved of God. In an interview, he said that he believed the central moment in Jesus' public ministry to be his baptism in the Jordan, when Jesus heard the affirmation, 'You are my beloved son on whom my favour rests.' 'That is the core experience of Jesus,' Nouwen writes. 'He is reminded in a deep, deep way of who he is ... I think his whole life is continually claiming that identity in the midst of everything.' You Are Beloved is a daily devotional created from the very best of Nouwen's writings, paired with daily Scripture readings, that reveals our identity as children of God, and which encourages us to live out that truth in our daily lives. Nouwen is at once refreshingly accessible, unafraid to wrestle with challenging questions, and above all an encouraging and sympathetic voice along the way.

The book of Numbers is the story of the people of Israel in the wilderness as they departed from slavery in Egypt to the freedom of the promised land of Canaan. It contains a variety of materials relating to this transition from the old generation of Israel to the new, including stories and laws, census lists, instructions for worship, reports of military battles, and accounts of legal disputes. Numbers chronicles a community faced with many competing interests, groups, and issues, endeavoring to define itself and its mission in the world. Dennis Olson offers readers a comprehensive interpretation of this often overlooked book. He provides a thoroughly contemporary reading of Numbers that enlightens the modern church as it navigates the contemporary wilderness of pluralism, competing voices, and shifting foundations in the journey toward the twenty-first century.

When Christians Were Jews tells the story of identity rediscovered. Narrating recent biblical scholarship as a story of family strife, Berard recounts how early Christians dissociated from their Jewish origins and reflects on the spiritual loss suffered by Christianity because of this division. He calls Christians to explore with open mind and heart . . . the Jewishness not only of Jesus but of themselves.

This commentary on the book of Job is a non-technical commentary but it is full of Whybray's most mature reflections on the book. The Introduction deals with the nature and purpose of the book, its specific and distinctive theology, its themes and its various parts and their mutual relationship. Thereafter, Norman Whybray, who is renowned for his insightful commentaries, usually comments on small sections of the text, and verse-by-verse in some especially difficult passages. As a whole, his commentary is illustrative of the fact that the book of Job is more concerned with the nature of God than with the problem of suffering. This is a reprint of the original edition in 1998.

In Jeremiah 12:5 God says to the prophet, "If you're worn out in this footrace with men, what makes you think you can race against horses?" We all long to live life at its best-to fuse freedom and spontaneity with purpose and meaning. Why then do we often find our lives so humdrum, so unadventuresome, so routine? Or else so frantic, full of activity, but still devoid of fulfillment? How do we learn to risk, to trust, to pursue wholeness and excellence-to run with the horses instead of shuffling along with the crowd? In a series of profound reflections on the life of Jeremiah the prophet, Eugene Peterson explores the heart of what it means to be fully and genuinely human. In his signature pastoral style, he invites readers to grasp the biblical truth that each person's story of faith is completely original. Peterson's writing is filled with humor and self-reflection, insight and wisdom, helping to set a course for others in the quest for life at its best. This special commemorative edition includes a preface taken from Eric Peterson's homily at his father's memorial service.

One day a merchant found a pearl of immense value. In the well-known parable that Jesus told, the merchant sold everything he had and bought the pearl. Joni Eareckson Tada reminds you there is a spiritual treasure within your reach. Each day contains glorious pearls of hope and faith waiting to be claimed. In Pearls of Great Price, Joni lovingly strings together some of her own choice pearls and presents them to you in this beautiful devotional. Filled with inspiration and insight for an entire year, Pearls of Great Price offers luminous, intimate glimpses of God's glory.

Through the Year with John Wesley refreshes and presents some of the theological and reflective writings of the Reverend John Wesley, renowned as 'The father of Methodism'. A deeply spiritual man of high integrity and indomitable character, Wesley strove to present great Christian truths to the non-churchgoing masses of England throughout the 1700s, making a powerful impact upon the nation; the like of which has rarely been felt since. Each daily reading is a pure extract from Reverend John Wesley's prolific output as an intelligent, thoughtful and passionate writer. Married to appropriate verses of Scripture and a daily prayer, the words he left behind carry an ancient power.

Whether used as an individual Bible study or used for studying with a group, the Nelson Impact Bible Study Guide Series will deepen your knowledge and understanding of the Bible, book by book.

Written in an easy-to-read, interesting style, each study guide will help you to experience the true meaning of the messages of the Bible, and in turn, empower you to truly make a difference in the world for Christ.

Key Features Include: Timelines Fun cultural facts and probing questions Plenty of room for taking notes Biblical and present-day maps

Other study guides in the series include: 1 Corinthians ISBN: 1418506192 Exodus ISBN: 1418506168 Genesis ISBN: 1418506087 Isaiah ISBN: 1418506095 John ISBN: 1418506109 Mark ISBN: 1418506184 Romans ISBN: 1418506117 Ruth & Esther ISBN: 1418506176

In the first six centuries of the Common Era, the Rabbis of formative Judaism, from the Mishnah through the Bavli, consulted the ancient Israelite prophets for guidance on issues of theology, law, history, and literature. In this anthology, Jacob Neusner collects and arranges in documentary sequence the Rabbinic comments on verses in the biblical prophets of Michael and Joel.

This analysis of how the Rabbis of the Talmud and Midrash made Jeremiah one of their own shows how Rabbinic Judaism rehearses the Prophetic message. Jeremiah offered hope to renew the relation that was broken, and Yohanan ben Zakkai promised another mode of atonement, involving individual conviction, and conduct. Joining the two yields, the thesis of this book is: in the case of Jeremiah Rabbinic Judaism continues and recapitulates Prophetic Judaism. Prophet and Rabbi confront the same kind of crisis with the same theological outcome. The Prophetic response to and the Rabbinic reading of the event of the destruction of the Temple of Jerusalem- the certainty of God's pardon and love- intersect. The problem of this study of Rabbi Jeremiah is to describe precisely how the Rabbis of the formative canon in the case of Jeremiah naturalized to their system- thus Rabbinized- Prophecy. In taking over the heritage of ancient Israelite Prophecy and law, have the Rabbis subverted Prophecy's religious vision or adapted and adopted it, making that vision their own? By identifying the principal propositions of the Prophet and by examining both the Rabbinic reading of the Prophet and the Rabbinic theology of those same propositions, Neusner answers that question.

This anthology illustrates how Judaism's classical rabbis of the first seven centuries of the Common Era read the ancient Israelite scriptures. It presents, in particular, a selection of writings that show what happens to the five books of Moses at the hands of the Rabbinical sages of the formative age of Judaism. Each Midrash-compilation takes up a book of Scripture and systematically expounds the message that the Rabbis derive from that particular book. No statement by the rabbis of the meaning of a biblical book emerges as a mere paraphrase of the plain sense of Scripture itself. The compiler introduces the Rabbinic reading of the Five books of Moses, Genesis through Genesis Rabbah, Exodus through Mekhilta attributed to R. Ishmael, Leviticus through Leviticus Rabbah, Numbers through Sifre to Numbers, and Deuteronomy through Sifre to Deuteronomy. Genesis Rabbah shows how the rabbis found in the book of Genesis lessons of history realized in their own times. That approach to Scripture will not surprise Bible-believing Christians. Mekhilta attributed to R. Ishmael shows how the Ten Commandments are expounded in an inclusive spirit, so that the Commandments cover important aspects of everyday life. Leviticus Rabbah shows how the rabbis found in the laws of animal sacrifice lessons of both history and morality, once more an approach Christians will find congenial. The book of Numbers illustrates how the ancient rabbis read Scripture in such a way as to validate and justify rules that on the surface do not seem valid and just at all. In the case I have chosen, the treatment of the wife accused of infidelity, Numbers Chpater Five, the law of the Mishnah and the Tosefta affords to the accused wife rights that Scripture does not on the surface provide for her. We consider both the legal and the exegetical treatment of the topic, with its emphasis, for both norms of conduct and norms of conviction, upon God's justice. The book of Deuteronomy at Chapter Thirty-Two contains Moses's profound reflection on the me

Scholars generally see the aspiration of the Roman Empire and the imperial cult in Asia Minor as the great villain in "Revelation", treating the depiction of a cosmic conflict in the book mostly as metaphors that hold little or no explanatory power in the story. This book pursues the conviction that the cosmic conflict imagery is the primary and controlling element in the account. Such a reading puts the war-in-heaven theme in the foreground and calls on interpreters to pay more attention to the heavenly being whose attempt to subvert the truth about the divine government is the unremitting concern in "Revelation". This book redresses the distortion that results from leaving the larger conflict theme underexposed. Having first developed the story line, it aims is to show that the phrase 'Pistis Iesou' in "Revelation" is best understood when "Revelation" is read as a theodicy of God's handling of the reality of evil.

Stephen Ahearne-Kroll examines the literary interaction between the Gospel of Mark's passion narrative and four Psalms of Individual Lament evoked in it. These four psalms depict a David who challenges God's role in his suffering, who searches for understanding of his suffering in light of his past relationship with God, and who attempts to shame God into acting on his behalf only because he is suffering. Because Mark alludes to these psalms in reference to Jesus, David's concerns become woven into the depiction of Jesus in Mark. Reading David's challenge to God as part of Jesus' going ???as it is written of him??? (i.e., suffering and dying according to Scripture; Mark 14: 21) calls into question the necessity for Jesus' death within an apocalyptic framework of meaning. Finally, the suffering King David offers a more appropriate model for Jesus' suffering in Mark than that of the servant from Deutero-Isaiah.

Was the Gospel of John written in critical response to the Gospel of Thomas, an early collection of Jesus's sayings? Or was it directed to the Christians among whom Thomas originated? Ismo Dunderberg challenges these views, arguing that the two gospels were written at about the same time but without knowledge of each other. He also offers a thorough discussion of the identity and functions of the enigmatic Beloved Disciple in the Gospel of John, throwing new light on this figure by comparing it to other `beloved' disciples of Jesus in early Christian literature. This part of Dunderberg's analysis also helps to evaluate the portrayal of Judas in the recently published Gospel of Judas, although this text was not yet available, when this study was completed.

Once at the center of HB studies in the work of Wilhelm de Wette, and progressively moved to the margins where it was entrenched by Julius Wellhausen, the book of "Chronicles" has enjoyed a resurgence in scholarly interest in recent decades. However, no consensus has emerged from these numerous studies on even the most basic of issues: the authorship, date, genre, and purpose of the work have been at the center of much debate. For example: is the work from the Persian or Hellenistic or even Maccabean period; is it history or historiography or midrash or something else; is it originally the work of priests or Levites, and was it redacted by the other group and to what extent; what is its relationship to its sources - especially the Pentateuch, Samuel-Kings, and the Ezra and Nehemiah materials; how many redactions has it undergone and which sections belong to each; and what are its main theological interests? Rather than focus on one of these issues, which has been the trend of a majority of recent publications, this examination employs a literary approach in an attempt to address the coherence of "Chronicles" as a whole. Three major concerns of the "Chronicles" commonly discussed by scholars (genealogy, politics, and the temple cult) are examined through the lens of utopian literary theory.

The Christian, according to the apostle Paul, lives between two times. The end is already present with Christ's death and resurrection, but the end is yet to come with his second appearing. Pate traces the concept of 'already/not yet' back to its Jewish roots and shows with exceptional clarity how Paul's teachings on God, Christ, human beings, salvation, the Holy Spirit, the church society, and the last things can be successfully placed within this 'already/not yet' framework.

In the first six centuries of the Common Era, the Rabbis of formative Judaism, from the Mishnah through the Bavli, consulted the ancient Israelite prophets for guidance on issues of theology, law, history, and literature. In this anthology, Jacob Neusner collects and arranges in documentary sequence the Rabbinic comments on verses in the biblical prophet Amos.

This book provides an inviting and accessible introduction to the 12 apostles of Jesus and their gifts for us today.In His ministry, one of the first things Jesus did was to reach out to 12 individuals and draw them into a circle of close companionship with Him. This book is about these 12, their relationships with Jesus and each other, and what we can learn from them.By studying them we can learn much about ourselves and how we can experience the Holy. Don't forget, Jesus didn't call perfect people, but ordinary people - just like us. When we understand that, we go a long way to understanding how Jesus would like to work with us.John Claypool was a outstanding minister in the Baptist Church prior to his ordination into the Episcopal Church. He has authored many books including the moving "Tracks of a Fellow Struggler", written following the death of his young daughter. He was also a featured speaker on The Protestant Hour.

In the first six centuries of the Common Era, the Rabbis of formative Judaism, from the Mishnah through the Bavli, consulted the ancient Israelite prophets for guidance on issues of theology, law, history, and literature. In this anthology, Jacob Neusner collects and arranges in documentary sequence the Rabbinic comments on verses in the biblical prophet Hosea.

Daily readings with Scripture verses and prayers, based on the life and ministry of Catherine Booth, wife of General Booth and co-founder of The Salvation Army, often called 'The mother of The Salvation Army'. An ardent temperance campaigner, she and William developed together the firm convictions about salvation and poverty that led to the formation of the Army. Catherine Booth was eloquent and compelling in speech, and articulate and devastatingly logical in writing. At first, Catherine and her husband had shared a ministry as traveling evangelists, but then she came into great demand as a preacher in her own right, especially among the well-to-do. Although it was virtually unknown at that point for women to speak in public, and despite her nervousness, she developed a considerable preaching ministry. Catherine was both a woman and a fine preacher, a magnetic combination that attracted large numbers to hear her. This book of daily readings introduces us to Catherine's heart and convictions. Here we find the passion, urgency, thought and humanity which drove her on. Each devotional will take one page of the format above. Catherine's succinct, direct style is ideally suited to this form.