The book of Ecclesiastes belongs to a genre of writings called “wisdom literature.” The contrasting of true and false perspectives is a frequent tool of this literature. The author of Ecclesiastes structures the entire book around the perspective of […]

Jesus frequently utilized agricultural imagery to make a powerful point. In this verse he likens the burden of the law to the heavy yoke of a plow bearing down upon the back of an ox. Whereas God intended salvation to […]

Psalm 30 is a song of thanksgiving. David praises and thanks the Lord for his strengthening presence, and admits his own tendency to self-reliance and to forget that presence. Historically, Psalm 30 has been identified with the dedication of the […]

Mark’s Gospel has two climactic moments. The first climax is the confession of Jesus as the Son of God (15:39), and the second is here with the declaration of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead. Given the prominence of Peter’s denial […]

In the Gospel of John, this verse appears in the midst of Jesus’ cleansing of the temple. Moreover, John places this story at the very beginning of his recounting of Jesus’ earthly ministry. For John, this symbolic replacement of the […]

This verse in the Gospel of Matthew emphasizes the cosmic consequences of the death of Jesus. When Jesus shouldered the sin of the world, this was an action so significant that earthly signs of great magnitude attended it. The temple’s […]