“If Ancient Near Eastern mythology controls our interpretation, we’ll conclude that biblical authors conceived of Yahweh defeating a mythological monster known as Rahab to overcome chaos and create the world.” - TGC
“The first thing not to do when preaching from the Old Testament Prophets is to preach about the prophet. Instead preach the message of the divinely inspired book that bears the prophet’s name.” - 9 Marks
“This temple was likely built around 900 B.C. and operated for a few hundred years, until its demise in the early sixth century B.C., according to Kisilevitz and her co-researcher, who wrote about it in the January/February issue of the Biblical Archaeology Review magazine.” - LiveScience
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The structure of Ezekiel reaches its crescendo in the theme of the returning Glory to the Temple in Ezekiel 43:1-7.1 This return must be linked with the abandonment of Solomon’s Temple by the Glory-cloud in chapter 11. There is a narrative-theological arc extending from Ezekiel 8 and 11 over to Ezekiel 43.
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The first vision in Ezekiel 37 is the best known in the book. If people are ignorant of everything else in the book, they are often aware of the valley of dry bones, though frequently they have no idea what it means. It surely doesn’t help when commentators apply the whole passage to the Christian church.
“Which understanding, then, is more consistent with the message and import of the OT? To attain a clearer picture we must establish God’s posture and intention toward the nations in the OT.” - DBTS Blog
Stanley is correct that the church has at times incorrectly understood the Old Testament and in some cases has used the Old Testament to subjugate and coerce others. Rather than discussing the hermeneutical mistakes and complexities that led to abuses, Stanley simply posits that the entire Old Testament is now fulfilled and should be detached from the New Testament.
Republished with permission from Baptist Bulletin © Regular Baptist Press. All rights reserved.
