In a previous article, we took a deeper look at the Jewish New Year, Rosh-HaShanah, in the Complete Jewish Study Bible. Let’s use this same study Bible to look at another significant Jewish holy day, Hanukkah. We’ll learn about the historical background, the traditional Jewish observance, the New Testament observance,…

The Bible is clear that God expects his sheep and their shepherds to live in a certain way. These expectations are accompanied by tremendous promises, both for those who serve as leaders and those who submit to their leaders. We encounter this emphasis in the last chapter of Peter’s first…

Who gave Jesus the authority to cleanse the temple? That’s the question on the minds of the religious authorities, the very question they ask Jesus in Mark 11:28, “By what authority are you doing these things, or who gave you this authority to do them?” After their refusal to answer…

Nicodemus was convinced that God was somehow working in and through Jesus. He knew that God had sent him and the signs he performed showed that God was with him. But nothing could have prepared him for the response he got from Jesus after discretely visiting him under the cover…

Paul provides an astonishing and remarkable description of Abraham’s faith in God in Romans 4:17–21. In her new commentary on Romans in the Old & New Testament Library, Princeton Theological Seminary professor Beverly Roberts Gaventa highlights four aspects of Abraham’s faith in God. Let’s see how she skillfully unpacks this…

God’s revelation in Scripture doesn’t take the form of a theological treatise. But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t approach biblical doctrines systematically. There’s significant value in summarizing theological concepts and aligning our thinking with God’s. In his volume on 1–3 John in the New American Commentary, Daniel Akin organizes the…