Author: wilrens
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The Prophetic Books: Cut and Paste? (Reading the IVP Dictionary 2)
The good news is: I am on track with my reading, even a little bit ahead of schedule. There is bad news too, and there is a change of plan because of it (see below). Reading this dictionary, I am beginning to accumulate a fair bit of frustration with the contributing scholars. A number of…
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My First Special Project: I Am Reading the IVP Dictionary of the Old Testament Prophets (IVP 1)
Finally! I have been waiting to do this for a long time. And I am inviting you to be part of the learning experience. I will summarize the framework for this project below, but this four-minute video does a better job than written words can do, so please watch it and then come back to…
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Hungry? Come and Eat! (Isaiah Says It’s on the House!)
What Do You Do to Feed Yourself Spiritually? There is an unfortunate downside to asking this question. Too many of us respond with feelings of guilt. In a way, this is a strange reaction. Most of us will have dinner tonight. Let’s assume that for some reason we forget or simply don’t get around to…
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Zechariah 9-14: Does It Make Any Sense?
Once again I have been asked to teach the book of Zechariah in an SBS this month. I suspect because no one else was eager to take it on. I can understand why. This is an intimidating book with some very confusing passages in it. I have often thought it may be the most difficult…
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Six Reasons Why I Am Starting This Blog (and Why You Might Want to Follow It)
Any SBS graduate will recognise the “Why?” question; it is often a good one to ask when engaging with a biblical text. Here, I am asking it in relation to this new platform: why bother? In these first few pre-launch posts I explain my motivation a bit more in detail – for those who are…
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The Lost Value
I first wrote this essay in the autumn of 2002, shortly before I started my Ph.D. project. It describes part of my motivation to go through this, well, ordeal. In the new context of this website it serves a similar purpose: a partial answer to the why question. The text has been slightly edited for…
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Movable Type
The first time I heard this phrase I had no idea what it meant. It refers to Gutenberg’s invention that enabled book printing. As we all know, up until his time, everything had to be copied by hand or by cutting out a wooden template. Gutenberg used single letters that he combined in a frame.…