Study Commentaries

For generations, the Black church has been a cornerstone of resilience, community, and empowerment, serving as a sanctuary for African Americans facing systemic oppression. Rooted in liberation theology and social activism, it has played a crucial role in social movements and cultural identity. However, while the Black church continues to be a source of strength, it also mirrors the complexities and contradictions of the communities it serves.

El budismo, rama de la filosofía, ocupa un lugar central en el conjunto de la obra de Borges. La percepción del cosmos como un laberinto o una paradoja, la negación del Yo, el cuestionamiento a la concepción occidental del tiempo y la singular noción de que el mundo es una ficción y la realidad un sueño, entre otras ideas, cruzan los ensayos, cuentos y poemas del autor desde sus textos más tempranos y son la particular reformulación con fines literarios de algunos de los nodos centrales de esta doctrina.

On The Way, A (Relatively) Brief Summary of and Relational Commentary on The Owner's Manual by Larry Mudd is a modern commentary that offers practical insights into the Bible's teachings and narratives. On The Way serves as a companion on a journey through the ancient texts of the Old Testament. The author provides an interpretive guide to the Scriptures, often blending humor, contemporary language, and spiritual lessons. The tone is conversational, designed to make the Scriptures feel more approachable and relevant to today's listeners.

In Hebrew, this book is called dibhere ha-yamim: ''the words concerning the days.'' The Jewish Bible regards the Old Testament as 22 books and Chronicles is counted as a single book. I and II Chronicles take the form of a history: David and Judah are the focal points. The emphasis of I and II Chronicles is on the Southern Kingdom and the preservation of the Davidic line.

The critic and essayist Meghan O'Gieblyn was born into an evangelical family, attended the famed Moody Bible Institute in Chicago for a time before she had a crisis of belief, and still lives in the Midwest, aka "Flyover Country". She writes of her "existential dizziness, a sense that the rest of the world is moving while you remain still", and that rich sense of ambivalence and internal division inform the 15 superbly thoughtful and ironic essays in this collection.

Do you want to have a better understanding of the Bible? Do you want to see the big picture and how all the pieces tie together? Do you want to have a deeper appreciation for how the New and Old Testaments compliment one another? Beyond the Verse is a collection of Wes McAdams' observations as he embarked on - and completed - a transformational journey of reading whole books of the Bible in one sitting. His summaries of each book of the Bible will help you to notice important themes, ideas, and concepts as you transform the way you read Scripture.

This Very Short Introduction looks at the importance accorded to the bible by different communities and cultures and attempts to explain why it has generated such a rich variety of uses and interpretations. It explores how the Bible was written, the development of the canon, the role of biblical criticism, the appropriation of the bible in high and popular culture, and its use for political ends.

Può sembrare incredibile ma nella Bibbia, quando Dio sceglie una persona per affidarle una missione, si tratta quasi sempre della persona più sbagliata che si possa immaginare. Ordina a una coppia anziana e sterile di generare un popolo, chiama a sé un balbuziente perché diventi oratore e profeta, mette giustizia e verità nelle mani di ladroni e prostitute. Le figure più venerabili dell'Antico Testamento, come Abramo, Mosè, Davide e Salomone, sono in realtà segnate da una moltitudine di colpe, destinate a coprirsi di ridicolo.

Despite protests and warnings from friends and family, author Madeleine L’Engle, at the age of seventy-four, embarked on a rafting trip to Antarctica. Her journey through the startling beauty of the continent led her to write Penguins and Golden Calves, a captivating discussion of how opening oneself up to icons, or everyday “windows to God,” leads to the development of a rich and deeply spiritual faith.

The theologian Clarence Larkin (1850-1924) examines each chapter in The Book of Daniel and its meaning. It includes a chapter on the dream of King Nebuchadnezzar and Daniel’s interpretation of it. Published in 1918, the book prophesied the re-establishment of the State of Israel.

Lost in time for generations, the story of a 19th-century English gentleman in British India - a family mystery of love found and loyalties abandoned, finally brought to light. In 1841, 20-year-old Nigel Halleck set out for Calcutta as a clerk in the East India Company. He went on to serve in the colonial administration for eight years before abruptly leaving the company under a cloud and disappearing in the mountain kingdom of Nepal, never to be heard from again.

Duffy engages with some of the central aspects of Western religion in the thousand years between the decline of pagan Rome and the rise of the Protestant Reformation. In the process, he opens windows on the vibrant and multifaceted beliefs and practices by which medieval people made sense of their world: the fear of death and the impact of devastating pandemic, holy war against Islam and the invention of the blood libel against the Jews, provision for the afterlife and the continuing power of the dead over the living, the meaning of pilgrimage and the evolution of Christian music.

Rather than contain vague references to the words and actions of "the LORD" and "God" within the text, The First Seventy offers both seasoned readers/listeners of the Bible and those new to the text a spiritual explanation that can be discussed, debated, and incorporated into each individual's moment-to-moment life. Weaving direct quotations from the Bible into a fluid narrative, The First Seventy: A Retelling Commentary, Creation - The Ten Commandments retells and explains the interconnected story that spans the first seventy chapters of the Bible.

Centuries ago, sound theology and good fiction were friends and not strangers. Decades ago, authors strove not for self-expression and self-disclosure but for a mastery of craft and language and books that transformed the reader with wisdom and love. In more recent years, the old ideals have been exchanged for lesser ones. Few guides to writing, which tend to focus on mechanics, point of view, and plot, address the more important matters of meaning, depth, and heart. But it is the latter qualities that make a book a blessing and gift to both writer and reader.

Have you found it difficult to study the Bible and live like Jesus? Have you been frustrated because you want to follow Christ, but you may not have the practical guidance how to do so? Do you want to get excited to read and study God’s word? Whether you’re a new Christian, or a long-time follower of Christ, the In His Presence Devotional series will give you clear ways to walk with Jesus while equipping you to read and study the Bible effectively in a fresh way that is easy to understand.

Ever wonder why much of American Christianity is pro-spanking, pro-tough-on-crime, anti-gun control, pro-war, and hell-affirming, even though Jesus taught mercy, non-violence and enemy love? When Michael Camp started deconstructing his evangelical faith, he noticed a pattern. The doctrines he questioned—original depravity, substitutionary atonement, God-ordained genocide in the Old Testament, the doctrine of hell, etc.—were all tied to retribution and violence.

New, extended edition of the collection of “women's” reportages by Mariusz Szczygło. Unusual, nostalgic, atmospheric stories about ordinary women - beginning from Janina, who filled 700 notebooks describing her life step by step, and ending with two friends who have been writing letters to each other every week for 50 years, having never visited each other. These are only some of the characters in Mariusz Szygło's collection of wonderful “female stories” which come together into one, unusual story. This edition contains a new introduction and a new story about Iga Kamińska.

Here is Thomas Jefferson's classic abridgment of the Bible, in which Jefferson sculpted the words and ideas of Christ into a resounding moral philosophy. On and off for 17 years (including his term in the White House), Jefferson cut and pasted the philosophy of Jesus Christ, as recorded in Scripture, into one compact statement. He omitted any references to the virgin birth, miraculous healings, demonic possession, or supernatural events of any kind. His aim was to distinguish the moral philosophy of Christ from the religion that was later created around Christ.

The Holy Spirit is a studious and soul-thrilling look at the Person of the Holy Spirit. It was originally published in Arthur W. Pink’s monthly Studies in the Scriptures. In these thirty-one chapters, Pink examines things such as: the Personality, Deity, Titles, and Covenant-Offices of the Holy Spirit; The Holy Spirit during the Old Testament Ages, the Holy Spirit and Christ, the Advent and the Work of the Spirit; the Spirit Regenerating, Quickening, Enlightening, Convicting, Comforting, Drawing, Working Faith, Uniting to Christ, Indwelling, Teaching, Cleansing, etc.

It takes courage to walk out our faith. Courage to stand for what we believe. To set our standards on Biblical truth, not cultural trends. To pursue a life defined by integrity and character. And we find no greater profile in courage than in the life of Christ. This study follows our Savior as he faced opposition, challenged critics, and courageously chose to make the ultimate sacrifice.