Alpha & Omega Ministries Apologetics Blog
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Leningrad Codex Online
12/29/2004 - James White
I just saw a notification on PaleoJudaica.com that the Leningrad Codex is online and searchable. Here it is. Please try to contain your excitement. Your co-workers will wonder why you are shouting when you see it.15:04:02 - Category: Exegesis - Link to this article -
A Christmas Textual Variant :-)
12/25/2004 - James White
First, a blessed Christmas to you all. For those rejoicing, may you do so to His glory. For those of you bearing burdens at this time of year, especially those who have lost a loved one in the past year, may you find God to be your consolation and comfort in all things.Just one entry today (and yes, I wrote it yesterday and set it to appear Christmas morning). One of the most famous "Christmas" passages is taken from the King James Version:
Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.
But you may notice that the Christmas card company avoids modern translations like the NASB:
"Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased."
All of a sudden the "fluffy wuffy" element of the KJV rendering is gone, and we are back to that consistent message of God's holiness, man's sin, the need for reconciliation and redemption, etc. So what's the difference? Yes, it is textual in nature. In fact, it is the difference of a single letter, final form sigma, which often took a form in ancient uncial texts that could easily get "lost" in transcription. Here's a comparison:
euvdoki,a
euvdoki,aj
The first is what is found in the underlying Greek text of the KJV; the second what is found in the modern Nestle-Aland text. The Majority Text supports the KJV reading, of course. So in case you were wondering about that (a lot of folks do this time of year), there is the difference.
Taking tomorrow off as I am preaching on Isaiah 7 through 9 in the services at PRBC (and teaching on 2 Cor. 5:21 in the AM Bible Study). Lord willing, back on Monday afternoon.
06:00:00 - Category: Exegesis - Link to this article -
Sanctify Christ as Lord in Your Hearts
12/23/2004 - James White
Every apologist knows the passage by heart:1 Peter 3:15 but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always [being] ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence; (NASB)
But did you know this passage identifies Jesus as YHWH? Note the Greek of the first portion of this passage:
ku,rion de. to.n Cristo.n a`gia,sate evn tai/j kardi,aij u`mw/n(
Now, compare the Greek of the Septuagint (LXX) at Isaiah 8:13:
ku,rion auvto.n a`gia,sate kai. auvto.j e;stai sou fo,boj
See the similarity? Except when Peter draws from the LXX here, he inserts "Christ," saying we should sanctify, or set Him apart, as "Lord" in our hearts, the term "Lord" in the LXX referring directly to "Yahweh of hosts" in the Hebrew. It is hard for modern readers to climb back into the mindset and context of someone like Peter and hence to feel the weight of the use of such language of Christ, the Messiah. One thing is for sure, the early Christians did not view Jesus the way so many in our culture, and sadly, in "the church," view Him today.
12:52:20 - Category: Exegesis - Link to this article -
An Incarnational Celebration Thought
12/20/2004 - James White
I will be preaching on the Isaiah 7-9 section ("Immanuel" and "Mighty God" passages) next Sunday at the Phoenix Reformed Baptist Church. I just love this section (my first sermon at PRBC was on Isaiah 6, actually). Keil and Delitzsch made a comment regarding the use of "mighty God" that I've noted in the past:The name gibbor is used here as an adjective, like shaddai in El shaddai. The Messiah, then, is here designated "mighty God." Undoubtedly this appears to go beyond the limits of the Old Testament horizon; but what if it should go beyond them? It stands written once for all, just as in Jer. 23:6 Jehovah Zidkenu (Jehovah our Righteousness) is also used as a name of the Messiah,---a Messianic name, which even the synagogue cannot set aside (vid., Midrash Mishle 57a, where this is adduced as one of the eight names of the Messiah). Still we must not go too far. If we look at the spirit of the prophecy, the mystery of the incarnation of God is unquestionably indicated in such statements as these. But if we look at the consciousness of the prophet himself, nothing further was involved than this, that the Messiah would be the image of God as no other man ever had been (cf., El, Ps. 82:1), and that He would have God dwelling within Him (cf., Jer. 33:16). (Keil, C. F., & Delitzsch, F. (2002). Commentary on the Old Testament. (Vol. 7, Page 164). Peabody, MA: Hendrickson).
Some might wish to see a further level of understanding even on the part of the prophet, but that is not why I note this citation. It is just so refreshing, when one has to slog through all sorts of constant liberalism in almost anything written on the OT today, to read someone willing to faithfully read the text in its own context. And indeed, we celebrate the incarnation of the Mighty God this week. Hallelujah! Amen.
00:01:00 - Category: Exegesis - Link to this article -
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