David retrieves the ark from Obed-edom before recommencing the celebration. Elaborate celebrations accompany the journey to Jerusalem: David dances “with all his might” and dresses the part too. He engages fully...

In chapter 5 we learn David has covenanted with all the tribes of Israel to be their king and has made Jerusalem the capital of Israel. David’s relationship with God sustains...

As Paul describes his thorn in the flesh, his words are quite countercultural for life in the second decade of the twenty-first century, when materialism and financial success are honored in...

Paul mentions a man who received such a powerful vision of God that he actually experienced Paradise. This would seem to be exactly the experience the super-apostles in verse 11 would...

In the first five chapters of Mark’s Gospel, Jesus’ ministry consists of preaching the gospel of repentance for forgiveness of sins, performing miracles of healing, and casting out demons. Here, for...

All too often people have trouble perceiving brilliance in ordinary people and everyday situations. We get in ruts in the way we think about people. “I know that man. He’s just...

The city of God, Jerusalem, and the Temple are inextricably connected in the minds of the people of Israel. Some beauty of the city emanates from the wondrous reality that God...

The moods of Psalm 48 are like a sandwich. The opening and closing verses resound with joy and exultation, while verses 4-7 describe astonishment, panic, and trembling. The source of these...

In David’s time, shepherding was an everyday task. Even children were charged with tending sheep and goats, and David himself had been a shepherd as a child. When the leaders of...

The miracles that we expect from God in our lives do not always come according to our timing, nor do they always look like we want them to. How often do...