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JOHN: The people's bible commentary - JESUS WASHES the DISCIPLES FEET
JOHN: The people's bible commentary - JESUS WASHES the DISCIPLES FEET
by BRF - Richard A. Burridge
JESUS WASHES the DISCIPLES FEET The curtain rises on Act Two of John’s drama, yet slowly. Now that the ‘hour’ has finally come, time slows down. Act One and the interlude (chs. 1—12) have taken over two years, with two previous Passovers (2:13; 6:4). Act Two (chs. 13—19) covers j…
JOHN: The people's bible commentary - JESUS AND JOHN THE BAPTIST
JOHN: The people's bible commentary - JESUS AND JOHN THE BAPTIST
by BRF - Richard A. Burridge
JESUS AND JOHN THE BAPTIST The next scene gives us a glimpse of the ministry of Jesus and his disciples baptizing, in much the same way as John the Baptist and his followers. It was a good job there was ‘much water there’!…
THE WOMEN'S BIBLE COMMENTARY - Resurrection Issues
THE WOMEN'S BIBLE COMMENTARY - Resurrection Issues
by SPCK - Newsom, Ringe and Lapsley
Limited Divine Hospitality Not all discussions of foreign nations in Isaiah are so dispiriting. Isaiah 25 offers one of the best loved of all portraits, one which Christians often associate with eucharistic liturgies…
The Post Evangelical - 1 A symbol of hope
The Post Evangelical - 1 A symbol of hope
by SPCK - Dave Tomlinson
1 A symbol of hope It may seem strange to be talking about ‘post-evangelical’ just as others are talking about an evangelical renaissance, yet the subject is of vital concern to an increasing number of people who, for various reasons, feel the urge to explore new possibilities wi…
THE WOMEN'S BIBLE COMMENTARY - The Call to Choose
THE WOMEN'S BIBLE COMMENTARY - The Call to Choose
by SPCK - Newsom, Ringe and Lapsley
The Call to Choose (Joshua 23-24) Beginnings and endings of narratives are always important. Joshua 1 begins with the assurance of God’s victory and a call to obedience and strength. Chapter 24 closes the book with a rehearsal of the history of the Israelites and God’s overwhelmi…
THE WOMEN'S BIBLE COMMENTARY - Book V
THE WOMEN'S BIBLE COMMENTARY - Book V
by SPCK - Newsom, Ringe and Lapsley
Book V (Psalms 107-150) Book V of the Psalter opens with Psalm 107, a community hymn celebrating God’s graciousness in delivering the community of faith from exile in Babylon. The psalmist says: “Let the redeemed of YHWH say so, those he redeemed from trouble and gathered in from…
Four Gospels, One Jesus - From Jerome to the Book of Kells
Four Gospels, One Jesus - From Jerome to the Book of Kells
by SPCK - Richard A Burridge
From Jerome to the Book of Kells The illuminated gospels Jerome’s translation quickly became the ‘Vulgate’, which means ‘Common’ version. The canonical order of Matthew– Mark–Luke–John applied to Ezekiel’s sequence was fairly standard and the four symbols can be found in frescoes…
Psalms for Everyone Part 2 - If You Build It, He Will Come
Psalms for Everyone Part 2 - If You Build It, He Will Come
by SPCK - John Goldingay
If You Build It, He Will Come Psalm 132 In an hour’s time, I am off to our diocesan convention, where clergy and laypeople will make decisions about policies and initiatives for the coming year. We will begin by asking for God’s guidance and wisdom in connection with our discussi…
The Women's Bible Commentary - A "Woman of Substance"
The Women's Bible Commentary - A "Woman of Substance"
by SPCK - Newsom, Ringe and Lapsley
A “Woman of Substance” Picking up the term hayil (31:3), Proverbs ends with the portrait of “a woman of substance” (’eshet-hayil). Men with hayil, like Lemuel and Boaz in the book of Ruth (2:1), are honourable and affluent. They may be kings, landowners, or those who serve the co…
Mark The People's Commentary - Not Dead but Sleeping
Mark The People's Commentary - Not Dead but Sleeping
by BRF - Dick France
“Not Dead, but Sleeping” After the unhappy confrontation the last time we heard of Jesus in the synagogue in Capernaum (3:1–6), it is a relief to find that at least one leading member of that institution still holds him in high regard, even if it is under the pressure of urgent p…
Mark The People's Commentary - Storm at Sea
Mark The People's Commentary - Storm at Sea
by BRF - Dick France
Storm at Sea In 1986 the complete hull of a cedar-wood fishing boat from about the first century ad was discovered buried in the mud by the shore of the Lake of Galilee. It is probably typical of the boats in use in Jesus’ time. It is just over 8 metres long by 2.35 metres wide a…
Mark The People's Commentary - From the Least to the Greatest
Mark The People's Commentary - From the Least to the Greatest
by BRF - Dick France
From the Least to the Greatest Mustard Seed Mustard seed is proverbially tiny (see Matthew 17:20), and yet it produces ‘the greatest of all shrubs’. This is not, of course, the puny ‘mustard-and-cress’ that we grow in little plastic boxes, but a garden herb which in Palestine com…
JOHN: The people's bible commentary - The KING is BURIED
JOHN: The people's bible commentary - The KING is BURIED
by BRF - Richard A. Burridge
The KING IS BURIED After describing Jesus’ three last sayings and the flow of blood and water from his side, suddenly John inserts a narrative comment with two of his key words both used twice, ‘witness’ and ‘truth’ (19:35). John the Baptist was a ‘witness’ to Jesus at the very s…
JOHN: The people's bible commentary - The DEATH of the KING
JOHN: The people's bible commentary - The DEATH of the KING
by BRF - Richard A. Burridge
The DEATH of the KING The Romans would usually leave a crucified body hanging on the cross to be picked clean by animals and birds, as a warning to others, like the old gibbets for hanged highwaymen at cross-roads. According to John, it is the Day of Preparation for the Passover,…
Mark The People's bible commentary - Golgotha
Mark The People's bible commentary - Golgotha
by BRF - Dick France
GOLGOTHA Crucifixion was a particularly cruel form of execution reserved normally for slaves and for political insurgents. The Roman writer Cicero called it ‘the most cruel and revolting punishment’ and the Jew Josephus called it ‘the most pitiable of deaths’. A crucified person …
JOHN: The people's bible commentary - GOD SO LOVED the WORLD
JOHN: The people's bible commentary - GOD SO LOVED the WORLD
by BRF - Richard A. Burridge
GOD SO LOVED the WORLD THINGS As we saw before, this passage can be read either as the end of Jesus’ conversation with Nicodemus, or as a separate comment by the evangelist. Who says it, is less important than what it says, for it is one of this gospel’s supreme passages, full of…
THE WOMEN'S BIBLE COMMENTARY - The Prelude to the Passion of Jesus