Sermons and Biblical Studies

Gordon Franz Introduction Coins offer a “numismatic2 window” into the world of the New Testament (Oster 1982: 218). At the end of the first century AD, the power-hungry Roman emperor minted coins as political propaganda in order to influence his culture. This article peers through that window and examines the imperial coins from the reign … Continue reading “PROPAGANDA,
POWER AND THE PERVERSION OF BIBLICAL TRUTHS:
COINS ILLUSTRATING THE BOOK OF REVELATION1”

Brian Janeway Tell Ta‘yinat is located in southern Turkey, in a region where the southern border dips down to take in a fertile region known as the Amuq Valley east of the northeast corner of the Mediterranean. A major city in this area in New Testament times was Antioch, where followers of Jesus were first … Continue reading “BIBLICAL
CONNECTIONS AT TELL TA‘YINNAT, TURKEY”

Stephen Caesar Numbers 6:24–26 contains one of the central passages of Scripture, known as the “Priestly” or “Aaronic” Benediction: The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the LORD turn His face toward you and give you peace. Evidence for the antiquity of … Continue reading “THE
BLESSING OF THE SILVER SCROLLS”

Paul Ferguson BSpade 19:2 (Spring 2006) p. 50 Tyre was a major Phonician commercial center famous for its wealth and beauty. It was located on two sandstone reefs about 1.2 mi (2 km) off the coast of Lebanon. According to Herodotus, King Hiram (ca. 969–936 BC) joined the two reefs with land fill, enlarging the … Continue reading “EZEKIEL
26:1-14
A PROOF TEXT FOR INERRANCY OR FALLIBILITY OF THE OLD TESTAMENT?”

David E. Graves There was a considerable Jewish population in Smyrna, which was hostile to the early church. They opposed the early Christians and promoted the persecution of Christians (Rv 2:9–10). In the Revelation to John, they are described as calling themselves Jews but really belonging to the synagogue of Satan. As Walvoord points out, … Continue reading “LOCAL
REFERENCES IN THE LETTER OF SMYRNA
(RV 2:8-11), PART 3:
JEWS IN SMYRNA1”

Gary A. Byers If the Reed Sea can be located somewhere along the marshy lake district of the Isthmus of Suez (Byers 2006), which separates the cultivated delta from the barren desert, then the place names in the Exodus account can be centralized to a specific area. Everything prior to the sea crossing would have … Continue reading “NEW
EVIDENCE FROM EGYPT ON THE LOCATION OF THE EXODUS SEA CROSSING
PART 2”

David E. Graves The city of Smyrna has had a long and illustrious history of Christian presence. Christian figures such as Clement of Rome (active AD 90–100) and Ignatius of Antioch (died AD 110)wrote letters to Smyrna; Irenaeus, bishop of Lyons, was born in Smyrna; Polycarp and Pionius, bishops of Smyrna, were martyred here, just … Continue reading “LOCAL
REFERENCES IN THE LETTER OF SMYRNA
(RV 2;8-11), PART 2:
HISTORICAL BACKGROUND1”

Gary A. Byers Introduction It may come as a surprise to many students of the Bible that in the original Hebrew text the body of water the Israelites crossed when leaving Egypt is called yam suph, “Sea of Reeds,” not Red Sea (Ex 15:4, 22; Dt 11:4; Jos 2:10; 4:23; 24:6; Neh 9:9; Ps 106: … Continue reading “NEW
EVIDENCE FROM EGYPT ON THE
LOCATION OF THE EXODUS SEA CROSSING
PART 1”

Stephen Caesar Michael Luddeni The Biblical record suggests that Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were exceedingly wealthy men. This is borne out by the fact that they owned both donkeys and camels. The rarity of domesticated camels in the Bronze Age Near East, combined with the economic advantages enjoyed by camel owners over non-owners, along with … Continue reading “WEALTH
AND POWER OF THE BIBLICAL PATRIARCHS”

Lisette Brody Archaeology is a wonderful tool used for discovering the past. The things that are dug out of the ground shed light, understanding and truth to a history that would otherwise remain unclear. For example, have you ever read about the birth of the baby Jesus in Sunday school? Well, the Bible says that … Continue reading “FOR
YOUNG ARCHAEOLOGISTS:
HEROD THE GREAT”