How Hot is Hell? Biblical Ideas vs. Pop Culture Depictions
Modern discourse about Hell is often confused, and Christians from the early Church period probably wouldn’t recognize many modern ideas about it. Across the centuries, pop culture from Dante’s Inferno to TV shows like Futurama...
Hineni in Hebrew: “Here I am” from God and Man
The word “Hineni” literally means “Here I am.” It is generally used as a response to someone who calls for you. In the context of the Old Testament, some people interpret it as a response of total surrender, but it can’t quite ...
Jesus and the Syrophoenician Woman: Gentile Salvation
Syrophoenician is the word for someone who lived in Phoenicia during the time in which it was part of the Roman province Syria, as it was during the time of Jesus's ministry. It's a combination of the words Syria and Phoenicia....
Forgiveness and the Remission of Sins
The phrase “remission of sins” shows up in most translations of the Bible in at least a few places. When John the Baptist is born, for example, his father Zechariah makes a prophecy about him that mentions the remission of sins...
Was Jesus a Rabbi?
In the New King James version of the Bible, Jesus is first called a Rabbi by Judas, in Matthew 26:25: “Then Judas, who was betraying Him, answered and said, ‘Rabbi, is it I?’” The context for this verse is significant: Jesus ha...
What is paedobaptism? A Christian scholar explains
Paedobaptism is the more technical or older way of referring to the baptism of infants. “Paedo” or “Pedo” come from the Greek pais (πάις), which means “child.” However, because “pedo” in modern slang has come to be a shorthand ...
The Shulamite: Bride of Solomon and Allegorical Woman
The word “Shulamite” (also spelled “Shulammite”) is only used once in the Bible, in the Song of Solomon, chapter 6, verse 13. What does it mean? It’s at least a reference to the bride of Solomon, but the nature of the title is ...
What is wrong with reformed theology? By a Christian PhD
Reformed theology is a broad religious system with many different elements. Its theology is organized around the absolute sovereignty of God—the idea that God is in total, complete control of everything. In grappling with this ...