Psalm 23:5, ‘You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies…’ A prepared table implies things like peace, security, fellowship, and joyful celebration…none of which would be expected ‘in the presence of my enemies.’ This tension is designed to slow our reading and cause us to question: ‘How is it that YHWH […]
Psalm 31:7, ‘I will rejoice and be glad in your steadfast love, because you have seen my affliction; you have known the distress of my soul…’ /// This Psalm is written from the depths of affliction. Though v.8 presents YHWH’s salvation in the past tense, it is a past tense of David’s faith, not yet
Job 9:23-24, ‘When disaster brings sudden death, He mocks at the calamity of the innocent. The earth is given into the hand of the wicked; He covers the face of its judges—if it is not He, WHO then is it?’ In this post, I’m not commenting on Job’s evaluation of the situation, only on the
The Paschal Trilogy – Part III/III – Resurrection Sunday Luke 24:30-31, ‘When He was at table with them, He took the bread and blessed and broke it and gave it to them. And their eyes were opened, and they recognized Him.’ The disciples did not recognize the Risen Lord until He *broke* the bread and
Resurrection Sunday (2022) 2 Read More »
The Paschal Trilogy – Part II/III – Holy Saturday Matthew 26:20, ‘When it was evening, He reclined at table…’ Considering Jesus’ final meal with His disciples, Irenaeus of Lyons makes the beautiful observation that ‘[Jesus] administered food to [His disciples] in a recumbent posture, indicating that those who were lying in the earth were they
Holy Saturday (2022) 2 Read More »
The Paschal Trilogy – Part I/III – Good Friday Leviticus 17:11, ‘…the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it for you on the altar to make atonement for your souls…’ When YHWH spoke these words to Moses, the primary referent was the animal sacrifices that God provided to deal
Good Friday (2022) 2 Read More »
Psalm 80:10, “ I am YHWH your God, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt. Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it. YHWH alone—as the God who raised His people out of slavery—will be the God of His people. A necessary implication of this is that He alone will be
This picture is based on John 6:35-40 and was created for a pastor friend in Minneapolis. The specific focus my friend was eager to see expressed was Jesus’ call to “come to,” “look to,” and “believe in” Him, and so these became the center of the image. Jesus’ invitation for any and all to
Ps 23:5, “You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies…” “Table” implies rest, rejoicing, supply, and—perhaps most important—fellowship, while “in the presence of my enemies” conjures images of threat, danger, tension, and enmity. It is not natural to set the experience of table fellowship and the immediate presence of enemies
John 19:14, “Now it was the day of Preparation of the Passover.” John mentions no account of Jesus’ Last Supper with His disciples. He does, of course, recount a lengthy discourse Jesus had with His disciples at a supper (13:1-2), but we never get a traditional account of the institution of the Lord’s Supper
John 6:35, “I am the Bread of Life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.” The Son, broken by the Father, offered in the Spirit, received by faith IS the Bread by whom every human hunger is satisfied. May God give us grace to turn away from
Psalm 36:8, “They feast on the abundance of your house, and you give them drink from the river of your delights.” I think the ultimate fulfillment of this Psalm is hinted at in Jesus’ prayer to the Father in John 17. There we glimpse the inconceivable truth that we will–in some sense–be woven into
In Revelation 17:16 we get a horrific description of the Beast’s hatred for the Prostitute. What makes this so startling is that the Prostitute was riding on/depending on/in league with the Beast just a few verses earlier….it’s a vivid picture of the hatred that underlies any veneer of “love” that Satan and the
Isaiah 55:2, “Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen diligently to me and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food.” John 6:35, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and
Isaiah 55:2 + John 6:35, 45 Read More »
John 6:33, “…the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” Manna points to Jesus
Mark 14:22,24, “Take; this is my body….This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many.”
Psalm 36:8, “They feast on the abundance of your house, and you give them drink from the river of your delights.”
