All theologians believe the Bible teaches that human history is made up of a variety of dispensations where God works in a special redemptive mode and epoch. What is debated, however, is the number of dispensations and the nature of them. I believe Paul outlines at least four fundamental dispensations (oikonomia) in human history in […]
Old Testament
Council on Dispensational Hermeneutics
The Council on Dispensational Hermeneutics is a group of traditional dispensationalists made up of mostly pretribulationists, some I have interacted with on the blog. Even though I think they are wrong-headed on pretribulational theology, there are other points that I believe we can learn from them on, for example, the question of Israel’s future, premillennialism, […]
Any Discussion on Who Is the Restrainer in 2 Thess 2 Must Contend with—Not Ignore—Colin Nicholl’s Research
Recently, there have been radio programs discussing the referent to the apostle Paul’s mention of a “restrainer.” What is baffling is that these programs have completely ignored Colin Nicholl’s research on the evidence of Michael being the Restrainer. Scholars in the last ten years who have been writing commentaries and other monographs have of course […]
Issues of Interpretation and Commentary on Matthew 24–25 – Jesus’s Olivet Discourse
I am asked frequently if I can recommend a commentary on Matthew’s Olivet Discourse. The problem is that (1) many commentaries on Matthew, in particular chapters 24–25, come from a historicist view, an interpretation that skews Matthew’s message and consequently distorts the application for the church today; (2) some commentaries come from a preterist view and/or […]
The Book of Daniel – Marquis Laughlin (Video)
Mr. Marquis Laughlin, founder of Acts of the Word, presents three chapters of Daniel through a dramatic re-enactment, highlighting the conquest of Jerusalem, the three men in the furnace, and Nebuchadnezzar’s mental illness. Also be sure to listen to his testimony toward the end! (24:35).
SIGN The Alliance for the Peace of Jerusalem
This week I signed The Alliance for the Peace of Jerusalem. I signed the Statement because: “The Alliance for the Peace of Jerusalem is an organization dedicated to facilitating a better public understanding of the complexities of the Middle East including its roots in history and the Bible. The group, which is comprised of key faith […]
The Messianic Hope: Is the Hebrew Bible Really Messianic? (Book)
The Messianic Hope: Is the Hebrew Bible Really Messianic? by Michael Rydelnik In The Messianic Hope, book six of the New American Commentary Studies in Bible & Theology series, Jewish Studies professor Michael Rydelnik puts forth a thesis that the Old Testament was intended by its authors to be read […]
Is Jesus Currently on David’s Throne?
Michael J. Vlach writes: The purpose of this blog post is to examine Peter’s use of Psalm 132:11 in Acts 2:30 with a view toward grasping Peter’s understanding of the throne of David concept. Acts 2 describes the baptizing and filling ministry of the Holy Spirit after Jesus’ ascension. This is all related to Jesus, […]
(VIDEO) What You Need to Know about the New Jerusalem
Doug Hamp gives a lucid biblical theology of the New Jerusalem: its nature, history, purpose, size, shape, location, and its timing of when it descends to earth, before or after the millennium. (Incidentally, toward the end of the video he puts a plug in for his book against Calvinism, which I would not agree with, […]
Valley of Hinnom
Steve Hays writes: A reader drew my attention to this post: Jesus and Hell Several fallacies in his argument: i) Metaphors originate in a particular concrete phenomena, but acquire an abstract, analogical significance. The significance of the metaphor is not identical to the natural or historical exemplar. It develops a significance that goes beyond the […]
A Teachable Moment Why Pretrib Logic Fails Miserably on the Daniel’s Seventy-Weeks Prophecy
Billy Crone in the video below (starting at 8:00) commits this common logical and biblical error on this issue. Here is the pretrib logic: Pretribs reason that since the Seventy-Weeks prophecy in Daniel 9:24–27 was given to Israel, the Church cannot “exist” on earth during any of its fulfillment. Here is why this common pretrib argument fails: […]