* Spiritual resource for Bible study and reflection/discussion prior to church meetings * Passages deal with common issues of group life (conflict, change, leadership, vision, burnout) After years as a member of parish staffs and as a congregational and diocesan consultant, Judith Carlson became increasingly aware how seldom Bible study or some spiritual component is incorporated into church meetings. Even when they want to, busy lay people worry it will take "too much time" or aren't sure what scripture to use or fear they "don't know enough" about the Bible. Clergy too, despite good intentions, often have trouble finding time to prepare something. This simple model provides a way to add the missing (and needed) spiritual dimension. First Order of Business contains 36 brief sessions, 12 minutes a piece. Each has a scripture passage and three open-ended reflection questions-open-ended to fit a variety of situations (though not automatically suggesting "right answers") and allowing some genuine reflection in a non-threatening way. Carlson's hope is that allowing "space" for the Spirit's presence can transform ordinary "business as usual" into a broader, more spiritual context for a group's work of mission or ministry.

A meditation on the meaning of Good Friday and the value of silence. Good Friday is not like any other time of the year, and Christians everywhere wonder about the best way to mark the day. Again and again, sermons and meditations have centered our attention on the words Jesus spoke from the cross, but those few, brief words would have needed only a few minutes on the first Good Friday. Seven chapters in this unique book consider the event, and the meaning, of the Crucifixion to our lives today, including the various ways in which silence plays a role in our daily lives. So many of us are overwhelmed with words coming at us from all our electronic devices that the thought of more language has less appeal than it once did. On one of the holiest days of the year, these brief meditations are designed to call us into the silence that still speaks more loudly than words.

This ground-breaking commentary on The Revelation to John (the Apocalypse) reveals its far-reaching influence on society and culture, and its impact on the church through the ages.
Explores the far-reaching influence of the Apocalypse on society and culture.
Shows the book's impact on the Christian church through the ages.
Looks at interpretations of the Apocalypse by theologians, ranging from Augustine to late twentieth century liberation theologians.
Considers the book's effects on writers, artists, musicians, political figures, visionaries, and others, including Dante, Hildegard of Bingen, Milton, Newton, the English Civil war radicals, Turner, Blake, Handel, and Franz Schmidt.
Provides access to material not readily available elsewhere.
Will appeal to students and scholars across a wide range of disciplines, as well as to general readers.

More information about this series is available from the Blackwell Bible Commentaries website at http: //www.bbibcomm.net/

This book of daily Bible readings and reflections for Advent and Christmas is based around spiritual insights gleaned from some of the best-loved poets of the past - T.S. Eliot, George Herbert, Tennyson and Auden, among others. While they come from different ages and backgrounds, they wrestled with the same questions that we do, about God, love, hope, and suffering. This book is not a literary study of their work, but a quest to see what they can tell us about life and faith today. Their poems are quoted in short sections, with suggestions about what they might mean for us now. There are so many aspects of God's love for us and ours for him that are hard to grasp. While we can glimpse only part of the picture, it often seems that, in poetry, our deepest yearnings can come to the surface. As we travel the road to Christmas in the company of these great poets, we will find our minds enlarged and our hearts touched with something of the wonder and joy of this special season. The Bible readings are drawn from the lectionary.

Generally, readers have a negative idea of the Exile. Psalm 137 has fuelled the idea that this was a time of sorrow and despair. This image of the Exile influenced, for instance, Luther's ideas on the Babylonian Captivity of the Church. The four essays in this volume deconstruct and reconstruct this image. Bob Becking tries to recreate a history of the exile. On the basis of the available evidence, this could be no more than a fragmented history, nevertheless showing that the fate of the exiles was not as bad as often supposed. Anne Mareike Wetter reveals that the biblical image of exile is multi facetted. She shows how a tradition of a people tied to their God-given land was challenged by the reality of foreign occupation. And how that people eventually succeeded in translating this experience, appropriating them through a transformation into a counter-tradition that enabled them to cope with the new situation, without breaking entirely with their cultural and religious heritage. Jewish ideas on Exile are discussed by Wilfred van der Poll. He concentrates on the use of the concept of galut, which refers to the paradigmatic and identity-shaping function of the dispersion of the people of Israel and showed that the exile in Jewish thinking had become a permanent reality up until the present day. From the perspective of intertextual reading, Alex Cannegieter discusses four texts of varying ages and background - Augustine, Petrarch, Luther, and a Dutch sermon held after the end of the Second World War. She explores the ways authors chose biblical texts to appropriate them a new context, thereby changing the meaning of the new, as well as the source texts.

Let's Study Philippians is the first in a series of commentaries written to encourage ordinary Christians to read and apply God's Word. Designed to be used by individuals or by groups, it contains an exposition of the text as well as a study guide.

Generally, readers have a negative idea of the Exile. Psalm 137 has fuelled the idea that this was a time of sorrow and despair. This image of the Exile influenced, for instance, Luther's ideas on the Babylonian Captivity of the Church. The four essays in this volume deconstruct and reconstruct this image. Bob Becking tries to recreate a history of the exile. On the basis of the available evidence, this could be no more than a fragmented history, nevertheless showing that the fate of the exiles was not as bad as often supposed. Anne Mareike Wetter reveals that the biblical image of exile is multi facetted. She shows how a tradition of a people tied to their God-given land was challenged by the reality of foreign occupation. And how that people eventually succeeded in translating this experience, appropriating them through a transformation into a counter-tradition that enabled them to cope with the new situation, without breaking entirely with their cultural and religious heritage. Jewish ideas on Exile are discussed by Wilfred van der Poll. He concentrates on the use of the concept of galut, which refers to the paradigmatic and identity-shaping function of the dispersion of the people of Israel and showed that the exile in Jewish thinking had become a permanent reality up until the present day. From the perspective of intertextual reading, Alex Cannegieter discusses four texts of varying ages and background - Augustine, Petrarch, Luther, and a Dutch sermon held after the end of the Second World War. She explores the ways authors chose biblical texts to appropriate them a new context, thereby changing the meaning of the new, as well as the source texts.

Designed to be read in 15-20 minutes a day, this liturgical devotional guide will give readers focus and purpose in their daily quiet time while pointing them to Christ. Gift edition features a timeless TruTone cover.

The central premise of this book is that biblical Hebrew narrative, in terms of its structure, tends to operate under similar mechanical constraints to those of a stage-play; wherein 'space' is central, characters are fluid, and 'objects' within the narrative tend to take on a deep internal significance. The smaller episodic narrative units within the Hebrew aesthetic tend to grant primacy to space, both ideologically and at the mechanical level of the text itself. However 'space', as a determinate structural category, has been all but overlooked in the field of biblical studies to date; reflecting perhaps our own inability, as modern readers, to see beyond the dominant 'cinematic' aesthetic of our times. The book is divided into two major sections, each beginning with a more theoretical approach to the function of narrative space, and ending with a practical application of the previous discussion; using Genesis 28.10-22 (the Bethel narrative) and the book of Ruth respectively, as test cases.

This book discusses the adult development of the Biblical Patriarch, Abraham, as a 'Spiritual Revolutionary' (based on Genesis 11-25). It begins with the image of the 'akeda, ' the binding of Isaac in which a father is ready to murder his son, and asks what significance this disturbing scene holds for us today. Focusing on the Hebrew text, and with the help of life-cycle psychology and cultural anthropology, the author argues that the 'sacrifice of the most beloved son' must be viewed not as an isolated act, but against the background of his personal and spiritual development, using the Biblical text as a life history. Abramovitch applies several approaches: theory of adult development; Robert Jay Lifton's 'death and continuity of life'; themes of revolutionary continuity; psychology of birth order; name change, identity, and disguise; ethics of survival and post traumatic stress syndrome; and the nature of biography, life history, and life story. Abramovitch relates how Abraham was able to 'solve for all what he was unable to solve for himself alone.'

This work sets out the background world for the story of Jonah. Accepting the biblical book as a fictitious short story based on "real world" locations, the volume uses social science approaches to describe the imaginative world in which the action takes place. Since the story uses real places and recognizable persons to weave the narrative, at least three levels of perception are considered: the "real" world behind the book's references; the social and ideological constructs of the world; the imaginative world of the story itself. All of these are connected by and through the scribal author of the story. Geography, theology, human characters and natural flora and fauna are investigated. The models creatively used by humans to order their vision of the world can be shown to have been used as literary devices in constructing a story with totally fictitious historical citations as well as fabulous creatures and events that nonetheless conveys a message considered an insight into reality by the author. The story of Jonah, often read as a simple children's story, comes across as a more complicated and adult oriented narrative with a serious intent.

The central premise of this book is that biblical Hebrew narrative, in terms of its structure, tends to operate under similar mechanical constraints to those of a stage-play; wherein 'space' is central, characters are fluid, and 'objects' within the narrative tend to take on a deep internal significance. The smaller episodic narrative units within the Hebrew aesthetic tend to grant primacy to space, both ideologically and at the mechanical level of the text itself. However 'space', as a determinate structural category, has been all but overlooked in the field of biblical studies to date; reflecting perhaps our own inability, as modern readers, to see beyond the dominant 'cinematic' aesthetic of our times. The book is divided into two major sections, each beginning with a more theoretical approach to the function of narrative space, and ending with a practical application of the previous discussion; using "Genesis 28.10-22" (the Bethel narrative) and the book of "Ruth" respectively, as test cases.

Classic scholarship brought up to date. An A - Z of Bible terms, place names, books, people and doctrine. Written by an international team of over 150 scholars, reflecting recent advances in research and scholarship. Maps, family trees, line drawings, diagrams and charts clarify and expand the text. An index gives ease of access to all significant data. The New Bible Dictionary has stood the test of time. It has long been recognized as an essential reference work, and it has been revised and improved for the Bible students of today. This Third Edition updates key articles, time charts and all bibliographies - revisions that reflect recent developmemnts in biblical studies. A vital tool freshly sharpened for contemporary use.

This work sets out the background world for the story of Jonah. Accepting the biblical book as a fictitious short story based on "real world" locations, the volume uses social science approaches to describe the imaginative world in which the action takes place. Since the story uses real places and recognizable persons to weave the narrative, at least three levels of perception are considered: the "real" world behind the book's references; the social and ideological constructs of the world; the imaginative world of the story itself. All of these are connected by and through the scribal author of the story. Geography, theology, human characters and natural flora and fauna are investigated. The models creatively used by humans to order their vision of the world can be shown to have been used as literary devices in constructing a story with totally fictitious historical citations as well as fabulous creatures and events that nonetheless conveys a message considered an insight into reality by the author. The story of Jonah, often read as a simple children's story, comes across as a more complicated and adult oriented narrative with a serious intent.

Ons land se voorspoed is afhanklik van die finansiele sukses en onafhanklikheid van ons as individue. Hierdie titel handel oor die persoonlike suksesse van elkeen van ons. Sukses is die resultaat van dit wat bereik word deur ons pogings en toewyding. Behoorlike voorbereiding is die sleutel tot ons sukses. Ons dade en die bereiking van ons doelwitte is die gevolg van ons wysheid en begrip. Dit is die doel van hierdie titel: om aan hulle wat na finansiele sukses en insig streef, te help om geld te maak, om die geld te hou en om jou geld vir jou te laat werk. In die volgende bladsye word ons teruggevoer na antieke Babilon, die wieg van destydse rykdom en welvaart, waar hierdie wette gekoester en toegepas is en deur alle eeue steeds deur suksesvolle mense toegepas word. Hierdie verhaal is vir elke mens, jonk en oud, wat nou deel gaan word van lesers reg deur die eeue, wat hierdie verhale gehoor, gelees en oorvertel het. Dis 'n verhaal van mense wat deur praktiese toepassing en ervaring lesse geleer het en sodoende die waarde van geld ontdek het.

How much time is enough to be with God? While it could be the 40 days or years used so often in the Bible, it's also possible that simply stealing a few minutes from the busy-ness of each day is enough time to be in Kairos, "God time." The same is true for the space needed to find God. Whether it be in a deserted place or one filled with activity, whatever space we can carve out to find God-or to make enough room to be found-is enough space. This book is about being with God in short time and tight spaces. The journey is taken through and with the Bible, 40 reflections based on 40 passages from Scripture, starting with Genesis and ending with Revelation. For the prayerful reader, it is an opportunity to carve out God-space and God-time, a pilgrimage with God, toward God.

History, Literature and Theology in the Book of Chronicles is a collection of studies published in the last fifteen years. The cumulative weight of these studies leads to a new understanding of the Book of Chronicles, its balanced and nuanced theology, historiographical approach and the way in which the book serves to reshape the social memory of its intended readership, in accordance with its own multiple viewpoints and the knowledge of the past held by its community. This volume shows that Chronicles communicates to its intended readership a theological worldview built around multiple, partial perspectives informing and balancing each other. Significantly, it is a worldview in which the limitations of even theologically proper knowledge are emphasized. For instance, in Chronicles' past similar deeds may and at times did lead to very different results. Thus, even if most of the past is presented to the readers as explainable, it also affirms that those who inhabited it could not predict the path of future events. Chronicles is therefore, a storiographical work that informs its readers that historical and theological knowledge does not enable prediction of future events. poignantly construes some of the most crucial events in Israel's social memory as unexplainable in human terms. Thus, Chronicles communicates to its readers that some of YHWH's most influential decisions concerning Israel cannot be predicted or explained. It is against this background of human limitation in understanding causes and effects in a past (present and future) governed by YHWH and the uncertainty that it brings, that the emphasis on divinely ordained, prescriptive behaviour should be seen. The intellectual horizon of Chronicles was perhaps not so far from that of the interpretative frame of Job or Qohelet, and of these books as a whole.

Walk the path of holiness, stir your faith in God, and break free from the bonds of a sinful nature with Joyce Meyer's Galatians commentary, featuring inspiring questions and space for your reflections. Paul's letter to the church at Galatia speaks largely to how important it was to Paul that the people embrace unity in Christ, no matter their differences. Galatians teaches that we're only justified by faith in Christ only and encourages us to pursue a life of holiness, not in our own strength, but in the knowledge of God's empowering grace in our lives. In this comprehensive study tool, Joyce Meyer offers an in-depth look at Galatians and emphasizes that we are not only saved by faith, we must learn to live by faith as well.

This book examines the personification of Wisdom as a female figure - a central motif in Proverbs, Job, Sirach, Wisdom and Baruch. Alice M. Sinnott identifies how and why the complex character of Wisdom was introduced into the Israelite tradition, and created and developed by Israelite/Jewish wisdom teachers and writers. Arguing that by personifying Wisdom the authors of Proverbs responded to Israel's defeat by Babylon and the loss of Davidic monarchy, and by retrieving and transforming the Wisdom figure the authors of Sirach, Baruch and Wisdom responded to the spread of Hellenism and the potential loss of identity for Jews. Sinnott concludes that personified Wisdom functioned to reinterpret and transform the Israelite/Jewish tradition.

History, Literature and Theology in the Book of Chronicles is a collection of studies published in the last fifteen years. The cumulative weight of these studies leads to a new understanding of the Book of Chronicles, its balanced and nuanced theology, historiographical approach and the way in which the book serves to reshape the social memory of its intended readership, in accordance with its own multiple viewpoints and the knowledge of the past held by its community. This volume shows that Chronicles communicates to its intended readership a theological worldview built around multiple, partial perspectives informing and balancing each other. Significantly, it is a worldview in which the limitations of even theologically proper knowledge are emphasized. For instance, in Chronicles' past similar deeds may and at times did lead to very different results. Thus, even if most of the past is presented to the readers as explainable, it also affirms that those who inhabited it could not predict the path of future events. Chronicles is therefore, a storiographical work that informs its readers that historical and theological knowledge does not enable prediction of future events. poignantly construes some of the most crucial events in Israel's social memory as unexplainable in human terms. Thus, Chronicles communicates to its readers that some of YHWH's most influential decisions concerning Israel cannot be predicted or explained. It is against this background of human limitation in understanding causes and effects in a past (present and future) governed by YHWH and the uncertainty that it brings, that the emphasis on divinely ordained, prescriptive behaviour should be seen. The intellectual horizon of Chronicles was perhaps not so far from that of the interpretative frame of Job or Qohelet, and of these books as a whole.

Exploring the significance of Judas Iscariot for Christian theology and the difficult issues surrounding Judas, Anthony Cane shows that focusing on the tension between providential and tragic interpretations of Judas in the New Testament and in subsequent writing about Judas, is the key to understanding his significance. Building on the work of Karl Barth and Donald MacKinnon, Cane's argument sheds light not simply on the way Judas is understood, but on the way Jesus and the whole economy of salvation are understood. This book also highlights implications for the way in which issues relating to anti-Semitism and evil and suffering are most effectively explored.

New York pastor Timothy Keller is known for his ability to connect a deep understanding of the Bible with contemporary thought and the practical issues we all face. In this devotional - consisting of all-new material - Keller offers inspiration for every day of the year, based on the book of Proverbs. Working through the entire book, Keller brings this ancient wisdom to life and shows how to apply it to the realities of our daily lives. Just as My Rock; My Refuge taught readers how to pray, so this inspiring new devotional teaches us how to live lives that are rooted in wisdom.

Archaeological, epigraphic, numismatic, and historical research is used to illuminate the meaning and function of temples in both Jewish and Greco-Roman cultures. This evidence is then brought into a dialogue with a literary analysis of how the temple functions as a symbol in Revelation.