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Bible Q

Did Jesus break the Law of Moses about the Sabbath? Or just the Pharisee interpretations of the Law?

The Pharisee accusation The Pharisees persistently accused Jesus of breaking the law about the Sabbath. Most of these accusations relate to Jesus healing people on the Sabbath. The main passages concern the man with a withered hand in the synagogue (Matthew 12:10 & Mark 3:2), a man with dropsy [swelling] at a Pharisee’s house (Luke […]

Should Christians support the state of Israel?

No. Christians should not support any state. Our allegiance should be to our future king, the Lord Jesus, who has promised to return and rule on earth. (There, that was one of the shortest answers on this website) This does not affect the different question as to God’s continuing relationship with the Jewish nation and […]

Jesus forgave sins, but only God can forgive sins? (Matthew 9:2-8,

This occurs in Matthew 9 1 Jesus got into a boat, crossed the sea, and came to his own city. 2 Some people brought him a paralyzed man on a stretcher. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the man, “Cheer up, friend! Your sins are forgiven.” 3 Then some of the experts in Moses’ Teachings thought, “He’s dishonoring […]

What is the gospel?

What is the gospel? The old English word “gospel”, literally “good news”, has its roots in the Old Testament where the Hebrew verb “basar” meant to carry good news: How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say […]

Since the Aramaic translation of the Greek New Testament has only one word for “rock” Kepha, how do we know that Jesus intended to contrast Petros and Petra in Matthew 16:18?

Since the Aramaic translation of the Greek New Testament has only one word for “rock” Kepha, how do we know that Jesus intended to contrast Petros and Petra in Matthew 16:18? This question relates to the Greek wordplay in Matthew 16:18 “I also say to you that you are Peter (Greek masculine noun, Petros, loose […]

What was the vinegar offered Jesus to drink on the cross?

The Greek word here is oxos (ὄξος), a tonic drink which may or may not have had sour wine as one of the ingredients. Oxos had a history as a tonic drink in classical Greek, and is mentioned by Aeschylus, Hippocrates, Aristophanes, Xenophon, and others. Hippocrates recommend adding honey to the tonic drink to sweeten it. In […]

What date is the Book of Job?

Dating the Old Testament books is a complex and often controversial matter. However for the Book of Job which is a work of literature, a wisdom book, rather than a historical record, the dating can be left to matters of language, such as vocabulary, and content. The following is from Job by Edward L. Greenstein. […]