What does it mean to be popular? Is it a mark of good character, or merely a sign that you're well-regarded among an influential group of elites? The hero in Booth Tarkington's tale The Conquest of Canaan has achieved a strange kind of popularity -- he's seen as a prince among those who are down on their luck, but to the upper classes and the powerful, he might as well be invisible. Will Joe Loudon be able to channel his limited influence to make some much-needed changes in his community?
Perhaps no biblical episode is more troubling than the conquest of Canaan. But do the so-called holy war texts of the Old Testament portray a divinely inspired genocide? John Walton and J. Harvey Walton take us on an archaeological dig, reframing our questions and excavating the layers of translation and interpretation that cloud our perception of these difficult texts.
A common objection to belief in the God of the Bible is that a good, kind, and loving deity would never command the wholesale slaughter of nations. Even Christians have a hard time stomaching such a thought, and many avoid reading those difficult Old Testament passages that make us squeamish. Instead, we quickly jump to the enemy-loving, forgiving Jesus of the New Testament. And yet, the question doesn't go away. Did God really command genocide? Is the command to "utterly destroy" morally unjustifiable? Is it literal? Are the issues more complex and nuanced than we realize? In the tradition of his popular Is God a Moral Monster?, Paul Copan teams up with Matthew Flannagan to tackle some of the most confusing and uncomfortable passages of Scripture. Together they help the Christian and nonbeliever alike understand the biblical, theological, philosophical, and ethical implications of Old Testament warfare passages. Pastors, youth pastors, campus ministers, apologetics readers, and laypeople will find that this book both enlightens and equips them for serious discussion of troubling spiritual questions.
The inerrancy of the Bible--the belief that the Bible is without error--is often a contentious topic among mainstream Christianity. Like other titles in the Counterpoints collection, this volume gives those interested in theology the tools they need to draw informed conclusions on debated issues by showcasing the range of positions in a way that helps readers understand the perspectives--especially where and why they diverge. Each essay in Five Views on Biblical Inerrancy considers: The present context, viability, and relevance for the contemporary evangelical Christian witness. Whether and to what extent Scripture teaches its own inerrancy. The position's assumed or implied understandings of the nature of Scripture, God, and truth. Three difficult biblical texts: one that concerns intra-canonical contradictions, one that raises questions of theological plurality, and one that concerns historical authenticity. Five Views on Biblical Inerrancy serves not only as a single-volume resource for surveying the current debate, but also as a catalyst both for understanding and advancing the conversation further. Contributors include Al Mohler, Kevin Vanhoozer, Michael Bird, Peter Enns, and John Franke.
"De Graaf's renewed insight into Biblical revelation is the unique perspective undergirding his treatment of all the Bible stories. It makes his book a unique presentation of God's revelation of Himself in the covenant and keeps his interpretation of the stories from degenerating into mere moralizing. De Graaf's theocentric preaching, which witnessed to God's sovereignty over the entire life of His people, gripped the hearts of his hearers in his day. The same emphasis, as it comes through in Promise and Deliverance, should be a matter of paramount interest and concern today to evangelicals who are manifesting a growing social awareness and seeking more and more points of contact between Christian beliefs and daily life." -Prof. H. Evan Runner, Calvin College
This updated edition by one of the world's leading apologists presents a systematic, positive case for Christianity that reflects the latest work in the contemporary hard sciences and humanities. Brilliant and accessible.
In today's world, the basic building blocks of a Christian world view are often missing in people's lives. To help fill in this missing information, The 52 Greatest Stories of the Bible presents a foundational, clear synthesis of the most significant narratives of the Bible along with the implications and applications of these interrelated stories. It presents the big story in such a way that it will: Connect the dots for readers of the Bible, demonstrating how each individual story is really one chapter in the larger story; Show how Jesus is the point of the story, especially his death and resurrection; and Build a biblical world view by showing the reader how the Bible answers the ultimate questions of life.
Throughout the past three decades, Nadav Na'aman has repeatedly proved that he is one of the most careful historians of ancient Canaan and Israel. With broad expertise, he has brought together archaeology, text, and the inscriptional material from all of the ancient Near East to bear on the history of ancient Israel and the land of Canaan during the second and first millenniums B.C.E. Many of his studies have been published as journal articles or notes and yet, together, they constitute one of the most important bodies of literature on the subject in recent years, particularly because of the careful attention to methodology that Na'aman always has brought to his work. Collected here are 23 essays on the Hurrians, the Egyptians and their presence in the Levant during the second millennium B.C.E., Canaanite city-states, the Amarna Letters, and the neighbors of Canaan in the north, such as Alalakh and Damascus. The essays range over such topics as scribes and language, archaeology, cultural influences, and the interrelations of the great powers during this period. The volume includes indexes of ancient personal names, place-names, and biblical references.
