Hot answers tagged

13 votes
Accepted

Should we ONLY say the Lord's Prayer?

Two comments about the instruction of Jesus in Matt 6:9 - If Jesus had intended that we ONLY pray the prayer He gave we would have the exact wording recorded precisely. However, the version recorded ...
Dottard's user avatar
  • 103k
7 votes

What does it mean "the earth is God's footstool"?

Adding a visual to Dottard's excellent information. A stone relief of Xerxes seated on a throne. Note Xerxes feet are on a footstool. A lot has been written about ancient thrones and footstools and ...
David D's user avatar
  • 1,490
7 votes
Accepted

Does anyone know precisely whether the gospel of Matthew was written before or after AD 70?

The Gospel of Matthew does not come with a copyright date=); however, we can make some pretty reasonable inferences from the available data. The budget answer is to say that Matthew was written post-...
Hold To The Rod's user avatar
6 votes

Should we ONLY say the Lord's Prayer?

Jesus presents this prayer as a model or example. He is not imposing a rigid formula for prayer. He is providing a framework for prayer. The Lord's Prayer serves as a template such as acknowledging ...
Jason_'s user avatar
  • 2,950
6 votes
Accepted

Why does Jesus change the "me" to "you" in Matthew 11:10

Matthew reports the words of Jesus regarding the specifics noted in the question and Mark takes this up in the opening verses of his own account. In the opening verses of his gospel account, the ...
Nigel J's user avatar
  • 30.8k
5 votes

What does it mean "the earth is God's footstool"?

The pertinent word here is הֲדֹם (hadom) = "footstool". It always denotes the footstool of God and is laden with overtones which may be classified as follows: The earth is God's footstool ...
Dottard's user avatar
  • 103k
4 votes
Accepted

Why do Matthew & Luke report that Joseph (Jesus' stepfather) had two different fathers?

The genealogies There have been many explanations proposed to answer the contradiction. The 2 most popular are: Matthew gives Joseph's genealogy and Luke gives Mary's (the inverse is sometimes ...
Hold To The Rod's user avatar
3 votes

Was Jesus's mentioning of the "Killing of the heir" a reference to Himself in foreknowledge?

There are several records that Jesus predicted His death would happen. Matt 16:21 - and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life. Matt 17:23 - They will kill him, and on the ...
Dottard's user avatar
  • 103k
2 votes

Allusion to Herod the Great in Matthew 7:24-27?

This is an intriguing connection of ideas. I cannot answer all of your questions, and some speculation would be required. However, there are some clear historical sources regarding questions 2 & 3....
Hold To The Rod's user avatar
2 votes

What does it mean "the earth is God's footstool"?

It seems that this is referring to God's transcendence, with the world being "as nothing" to his power. Compare Isiah 40:15-17: Behold, the nations are as a drop of a bucket, and are ...
apg's user avatar
  • 121
2 votes

Reconciling the accounts of the calling of Simon Peter

A basic mistake is often made when reading John's gospel as if it was an account parallel with the other three gospels. It is radically different, written at a different time, and for a different ...
Anne's user avatar
  • 23.2k
2 votes

Why was "doing good" on the Sabbath not included in Exodus by God?

Yes, there were allowed exceptions to the Sabbath rest law. It’s known today within certain forms of Judaism, as the spirit or heart of the law. Preventing harm and death of humans or animals is and ...
Rachel's user avatar
  • 329
2 votes

Why was "doing good" on the Sabbath not included in Exodus by God?

To add to the previous answers: The Sabbath God was very, very serious about His command in Exodus 31:13-17 (and others). Violators were to suffer the death penalty! So, what is the Sabbath? There are ...
Dieter's user avatar
  • 1,467
2 votes

Why didn't Christ outrightly discourage/condemn the taking of oaths in Matthew 23:16-22?

In Matthew 23:16-22, Jesus doesn't merely address the act of taking an oath, but rather, He condemns the hypocrisy of those who enforce strict adherence to laws they themselves disregard. While the ...
Vincent Wong's user avatar
  • 4,795
2 votes

Was St Joseph alive during the initial stages of Jesus' public life?

The New Testament does not answer this question. The most detailed ancient source (I am aware of) that treats this subject is The History of Joseph the Carpenter; which indicates that Joseph died when ...
Hold To The Rod's user avatar
2 votes

Should we ONLY say the Lord's Prayer?

A retro- translation of the Lord's Prayer into Aramaic, the language believed to have spoken by Jesus, was attempted by Jack Kilmon, Bible scholar and researcher. The retro translation is available on ...
Kadalikatt Joseph Sibichan's user avatar
1 vote

What is the best translation of Matthew 7:14?

The two operative words here are: στενός (stenos) According the BDAG this word means: in reference to dimension, narrow ... Matt 7:13 so that it would be difficult for even a relatively small man to ...
Dottard's user avatar
  • 103k
1 vote

Why do Matthew & Luke report that Joseph (Jesus' stepfather) had two different fathers?

Answer There is no contradiction because these are partly two different genealogies. Explanation Luke gives the list right from Adam and Matthew gives the list from Abraham. The list is the same from ...
Nephesh Roi's user avatar
1 vote

Why was "doing good" on the Sabbath not included in Exodus by God?

Although there is no permission given to "do good [work]" generally on the Sabbath, the text does indicate that there were exceptions to the rule about "no work.". Specifically: ...
Dan Fefferman's user avatar
1 vote

Is the English word sky a better translation for the Greek word “Ouranios” than heaven in the sermon on the mount?

Is the English word sky a better translation for the Greek word “Ouranios” than heaven in the sermon on the mount? I'll attempt an in-depth answer to add to Dottard's. However, the sort answer is: no. ...
Jason_'s user avatar
  • 2,950
1 vote

Is the English word sky a better translation for the Greek word “Ouranios” than heaven in the sermon on the mount?

The instances of οὐρανός (ouranos) = "heaven" in Matt 5-7 can be classified into several types: "kingdom of heaven" as per Matt 5:3, 10, 19, 20, etc "Father in heaven" ...
Dottard's user avatar
  • 103k
1 vote

Why was "doing good" on the Sabbath not included in Exodus by God?

Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labor תַּֽעֲבֹ֔ד֮, and do all thy work מְלַאכְתֶּֽךָ֒: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God ... Exodus 20:8-10 (KJV) ...
enegue's user avatar
  • 5,082
1 vote

What does it mean "the earth is God's footstool"?

In addition to those, it seems unavoidable to also take it as an indication that the size and scope of God is far greater than anything imaginable. All earthly rulers, palaces, cities, armies, ...
David R's user avatar
  • 11
1 vote
Accepted

Who does God prepare the praise for in Matthew 21:16/Psalm 8:2

Great question that involves some subtleties. First the original Hebrew phrase in Ps 8:2 is: מִפִּ֤י עֹֽולְלִ֨ים ׀ וְֽיֹנְקִים֮ יִסַּ֪דְתָּ֫ עֹ֥ז = "out of the mouth of babes and sucklings [...
Dottard's user avatar
  • 103k
1 vote

Why does Jesus change the "me" to "you" in Matthew 11:10

In addition to needing to being familiar with the larger collection of literature Jesus refers to, consider these verses... While it doesn't change anything, it may be easier to make sense of if read ...
Jesse's user avatar
  • 2,004
1 vote

What is the meaning of “blessed are those who mourn” in Matthew 5:4?

The word Blessed as has been written comes from the Greek word Makarios, and one of its applications is that those who receive it are being given Divine Favour, and those who mourn shall receive the ...
GRM's user avatar
  • 111
1 vote

Did Jesus allow people to eat meat forbidden by Moses (Matthew 15)?

Jesus' teaching in Mt 15:10-20 has two senses, an immediate and a mediate one. The immediate sense was to reject the mandatory status that the Pharisees wanted to give to their purely human tradition ...
Johannes's user avatar
  • 1,025
1 vote

Why did Jesus say, "Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?" that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?

Jesus - barely able to breathe, can only utter the first verse of the Psalm. He's saying - "go read this... this is how I feel." The Jews knew these Psalms... they were like familiar songs. ...
andrew g's user avatar

Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible