Reflections and meditations about the Bible by Peter DeHaan, PhD.
Influence Future Generations Despite King David’s many failings, God refers to him as “a man after my own heart.” A few generations prior, Ruth makes a bold statement of commitment to her mother-in-law and by extension to the God that mom serves. Ruth declares, “Where you go I will go, and where you stay I […]
Do you aspire to be meek? Not likely. Who would? When I think of meek, I think of spineless, compliant, and easily imposed upon. While that is a correct understanding of what it is to be meek, it is also the secondary definition for the word. The first definition for meek is patient, humble, gentle, […]
In the Song of Songs, the girl reveals something personal. She is self-conscious about the dark tones of her skin (from spending too much time in the sun, she says). She doesn’t want others to stare. Yet the friends in this story want to do just that. They admire her uniqueness and ask to gaze […]
I have heard some claim that if you follow Jesus, all your problems will be solved and life will become an idyllic and blissful existence. While I suppose that could be the case, I don’t reach that conclusion when I read my Bible. In one of the more obscure passages, this is shown figuratively in […]
The Song of Songs (sometimes called the Song of Solomon) is a part of the Bible that is not often read. Even so, three phrases jump out as being very familiar. The first is “rose of Sharon.” It is a beautiful and valued flower. However, according to some translators, this eloquent phrasing should more correctly be […]
Song of Songs is commonly categorized as wisdom literature in the Bible. With the possible exception of Job, it is not like the other wisdom books, nor like any other book in the Bible. It is easy to imagine Song of Songs as being the lines to a play that King Solomon wrote to both […]
After my prior post about the number one hit that used the Bible for lyrics, you may thing that it is the song of all songs. Not so. There is another. You may have heard the book in the Bible, Song of Songs. Song of Songs can be thought of as a “biblical erotica,” albeit […]
There’s a verse in the Bible that frustrates me—not for what it says, but for what it doesn’t say. Here’s the background: Jesus dies and rises from the dead, but his followers are slow to catch on. Two of them are on a road trip and Jesus begins walking with them, but they don’t recognize […]
I am confounded by the book of Ecclesiastes. As mentioned in the post “…and Then You Die,” Ecclesiastes is a depressing read. It is pessimistic and its main point to put God first is easy to miss. Ecclesiastes abounds with negativity and hyperbole, yet it also contains some wise thoughts and astute observations. Separating the […]
You’ve heard about Hananiah, right? How about Shelemiah? Zadok? Perhaps Pedaiah? Or Hanan? Although these men are all mentioned in the Old Testament of the Bible, don’t feel bad if they’re not familiar to you. They did not accomplish great feats, rule a kingdom, lead an army, spark a revival, or do anything seemingly notable. […]