Genesis 8:1-22 A previously hostile nation offering terms of peace. A business competitor bringing a promising deal. A chastened husband presenting a bunch of flowers. Any of these cases might be called “bearing an olive branch.” There are different views about how the olive branch became associated with peace. But its importance in the flood […]
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Glen
Revelation 21-22 What makes for a happy ending? Let me suggest four factors: The good guys win. The bad guys get their just deserts. There’s a wedding. And you finish on a song. There’s something immensely uplifting about a story that wraps up with this kind of victory. But the bible claims that history is […]
Revelation 16:12-21; 19:1-21 Armageddon is well known in our culture as the “final battle” for the future of the planet. But the way people imagine this battle differs greatly from the biblical reality. According to Hollywood, “Armageddon” is a special effects punch-up where the outcome is doubtful right up to the last minute. According to the […]
In 2011 there were many celebrations to mark the 400th anniversary of the King James Bible. This blog was just one attempt to raise awareness about the impact of this translation on the English speaking world. Throughout 2011 I blogged on a phrase each day that has passed into common parlance: popular phrases like “labour […]
Did you know that the King’s English exists as a paperback and on Kindle? Maybe it would make a good Christmas present for someone you know. Or perhaps it could aid you in your own Bible reading for 2014. I make virtually no money from the sale of them, I just offer them as a […]
Revelation 21-22 What makes for a happy ending? Let me suggest four factors: The good guys win. The bad guys get their just deserts. There’s a wedding. And you finish on a song. There’s something immensely uplifting about a story that wraps up with this kind of victory. But the bible claims that history is […]
Revelation 16:12-21; 19:1-21 Armageddon is well known in our culture as the “final battle” for the future of the planet. But the way people imagine this battle differs greatly from the biblical reality. According to Hollywood, “Armageddon” is a special effects punch-up where the outcome is doubtful right up to the last minute. According to the […]
Revelation 11:1-12:17 The word in Greek is “Abyss.” Jerome’s Vulgate left it untranslated. John Wycliffe rendered it “the pit of depnesse”. But it’s been William Tyndale’s turn of phrase that has endured: “bottomless pit”! Rightly, the KJV decided it could not improve on Tyndale. The phrase occurs seven times, all in the book of Revelation (where sevens […]
Revelation 1:1-20 What is the book of Revelation? Christian psychedelia? Religio-political prognostication? End-of-the-world prophecy? In chapter 1 we see that it’s a letter from John based on visions of Christ. “I, John, who also am your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was in the isle that […]
1 John 4:7-5:21 It’s universally popular. You can find it cross-stitched on Granny’s mantle-piece and emblazoned on a rock star’s T-shirt. It tumbles from the lips of bible-thumping fundamentalists and soft-spoken gurus. But what does it mean? Let’s consider four points… Because God is love, there is relationship, radiance, room and response. Relationship 1 John […]
