What does the Bible mean when it says the Israelites were “casting lots”? Is it like throwing dice, flipping a coin, or maybe like a “magic” eight-ball?
Continue readingCategory Archives: Connecting Old and New Testament
Lessons from the Old Testament revealed in the New Testament.
Ham’s Sin Against Noah
When most people encounter the story of Noah and Ham, they typically hold a single view of what happened. Ham looked at Noah naked and mocked him, and Noah became angry and cursed his son, Canaan. However, the Hebrew text used phrases that were consistently used elsewhere in scripture as euphemisms for something more nefarious. This leads to other possible interpretations that reveal why the punishment for Canaan was so harsh.
Continue readingThe Exodus within Jericho
When reading the Bible, one may find interesting repeating patterns, as if God is being extra creative to sign his name on his handiwork throughout history. In Joshua 2, I noticed a similarity to the Passover story with Rahab of Jericho.
Continue readingOld Covenant Promises in The New
Was Jesus poor, sick, or vulnerable? Are God’s people supposed to be in poverty, sick, and vulnerable? What about the blessings, as listed in Deuteronomy chapters 7 and 28, which are God’s promises to His people, including good health, victory against enemies, protection from disaster, and multiple blessings of livestock, crops, and children?
Continue readingDavid Eating Sacred Loaves
In Mark 2:26-28 (as well as Matt 12:1-8 & Luke 6:1-5), Jesus and his disciples are accused of harvesting on the Sabbath. However, all they did was break off a few grains to eat. Did they break the law? How did Jesus respond? What does David have to do with it?
Continue readingKing Solomon’s Failure
The Bible says God blessed King Solomon greatly because he asked for wisdom instead of wealth and power when God asked what he wanted (1 Kings 3:3-15). When Solomon built the Temple, he made sacrifices and honored God. In response, God promised to bless Solomon according to the promises he made to David (his father). However, he warned him that these blessings are conditional and based on his faithfulness to keeping God’s commands in the Torah (1 Kings 9:1-9). Solomon did not keep God’s instructions and eventually turned the nation away from God by endorsing idolatry and committing other sins. Let’s examine the laws Solomon broke.
Continue readingThe Source of David’s Courage
Most people are familiar with the story of David and Goliath. When David went to face Goliath, he was very confident that Goliath would be defeated. However, we must notice that his confidence wasn’t in his ability to beat Goliath, but rather in God’s ability to do so.
Continue readingEvangelism in the Conquest of Jericho
Joshua chapter 2 has some interesting parallels with the Gospel. In Joshua chapter 2, after 40 years of wandering in the wilderness, the Israelites finally initiated their conquest of the promised land known as Canaan. They were there to exile and wipe out the corrupt Canaanite culture and live there as a culture that represents God. This was a key promise of the Old Covenant for Israel. Their goal was to take the land promised to them through their ancestor Abraham and live holy, following God’s commands until the Messiah comes. Since Jesus the Messiah had come, we are in the New Covenant, and the goal is to conquer the world for the Kingdom of God. In the new covenant, Earth functions as a spiritual Canaan, and the kingdom of God is like a spiritual Israel that will come and conquer this world when Jesus returns.
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