Forget the Channel

Forget the Channel: lionelwindsor.net

  • The mediator in Galatians 3:20

    Galatians 3:20 is literally translated: A mediator is not of one, yet God is one. The word “one” can mean either “one (as opposed to many)”; or it can mean “united (as opposed to divided)”. What does it mean in this verse? And what does this verse have to do with Paul’s argument about the…

  • Postscript: Why the New Perspective claims that “righteousness” means “covenant faithfulness” – and why it’s wrong

    Here’s a very insightful post from Lee Irons critiquing the theory that “righteousness” means “covenant faithfulness”. I’ll quote a sizeable chunk of Irons’ conclusions because they’re highly relevant to both of my series on righteousness and covenant: As you can see, the New Perspective claim that “the righteousness of God” is a cipher denoting “God’s…

  • The ratification of the covenant in Galatians 3:17

    We have seen that the “seed” of Galatians 3:16 is referring to Genesis 17:8. In Galatians 3:16, Paul is explaining to the gentile Galatians that the “seed” of Genesis 17:8 is the “one” nation Israel, not the “multitude” of nations who will also have Abraham as their father (Genesis 17:5). In Galatians 3:17, Paul goes…

  • Improve your Biblical Word Power – the series

    I’ve put up a single page linking to all the articles in my “Improve your Biblical Word Power” series, originally published on the Sola Panel. Here are the posts in the series: Improve your biblical word power 1: Righteousness Improve your biblical word power 2: Forensic righteousness Improve your biblical word power 3: Justification Improve…

  • The singular seed of Galatians 3:16

    What is the purpose of Paul’s argument in Galatians 3:16? (This post is part of a series) In Galatians 3:16, Paul exegetes a phrase from the Abrahamic narrative: “Now the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. It does not say, ‘And to seeds’, as though to a multitude (ὡς ἐπὶ πολλῶν), but…

  • God, the universe and all that: Part 5

    From the Sola Panel This is the fifth instalment of a five-part series (Read parts 1, 2, 3 and 4) We’ve been looking at Psalm 8 and Hebrews 2, and have discovered that Jesus provides the solution to the puzzle of Psalm 8. Where do we see Jesus? We see him in the Gospels, those…

  • God, the universe and all that: Part 4

    From the Sola Panel This is the fourth instalment of a five-part series (Read parts 1, 2 and 3.) We’ve been looking at Psalm 8, and we’ve seen the puzzle it presents us with. On the one hand, we are nothing compared to the majestic God who created the universe. On the other hand, God…

  • God, the universe and all that: Part 3

    From the Sola Panel: This is the third instalment of a five-part series (read parts 1 and 2.) We’ve been looking at Psalm 8 and have discovered that stargazing should make us wonder why God the creator should have anything to do with us. At this point, if you were sceptical about the existence of…

  • God, the universe and all that: Part 2

    From the Sola Panel In the second instalment of a five-part series, I contemplate the extent of our significance in the universe. (Read Part 1.) We’ve been looking at Psalm 8, and we’ve discovered that stargazing helps us to see how insignificant we really are. Just think about the size of space for a moment.…

  • The word ‘covenant’ in Galatians 3:15

    What does the word διαθήκη (“covenant”) mean in Galatians 3:15? (This post is part of a series) Some interpreters understand the word to mean “last will and testament”.[1] In this understanding, when Paul speaks in “human terms” (κατὰ ἄνθρωπον) about a “human” covenant (ἀνθρώπον [. . .] διαθήκην) he refers to the secular Graeco-Roman practice…

  • The covenants in Galatians 3:15-22 – Introduction

    The argument of Galatians 3:15–22 is “generally reckoned among the most difficult in Paul”.[1] In Galatians, Paul is strenuously arguing against opponents who want the Gentile Christians to adopt circumcision and the law (i.e. become ethnic Jews) as a prerequisite for salvation in Christ (e.g. Gal 2:14, 4:21, 5:3, 11, 6:13). Wright, in the light…

  • The covenants in the background to Paul’s letters – a summary

    Before we look in detail at Paul’s use of the word “covenant”, it’s worth pausing briefly to review what we have learned about the use of the word “covenant” in the Old Testament, second-temple Jewish literature, and Greek sources. In particular, two important conclusions flow from our survey of the idea of “covenant” in the…

  • God, the universe and all that: Part 1

    On the Sola Panel: In the first instalment of a five-part series, I’m pondering what astronomy has to teach us. I’m a fan of space. I don’t actually know much about the details of astronomy or cosmology or astrophysics; I just think that the space is really cool. If there are any real scientists reading…

  • The sectarian covenants of Qumran and the New Perspective

    We asked, in our previous post in this series, whether we could detect a shift in the second temple literature away from the pervasive Old Testament understanding of the word “covenant” (“an elected relationship of obligation under oath”) towards a more sociological concept (akin to the New Perspective’s emphasis). The answer was “no” – apart…

  • Covenants in Second Temple Judaism

    We have seen, in our series so far, the way that the word “covenant” is used in the Old Testament. A covenant is not a catch-all term for “relationship”, but it refers to a specific kind of relationship: “an elected relationship of obligation under oath”. Furthermore, although some of the covenants are made between God…

  • Lead us not into temptation (Matthew 6:13)

    This was originally published on the Biblical Theology Briefings website (beginningwithmoses.org) in 2006. The Biblical Theology Briefings aim to provide worked examples of sermons that apply the insights of evangelical biblical theology. As part of a series on the Lord’s Prayer, I was charged with preaching a sermon on this line: ‘Lead us not into…

  • Covenants in Cloudcuckooland and the Greek Old Testament

    We have seen, in our series so far, the way that the word “covenant” is used in the Old Testament. How did the Hebrew word for covenant (בְּרִית) come to be translated by the Greek word διαθήκη? A good case can be made that there is a specific use of the Greek word διαθήκη that…

  • The two-fold covenantal relationship in the prophets: with Israel, for the nations

    We have seen that the covenants with Abraham envisaged two distinct but related goals: nationhood for Abraham’s seed, followed by blessing for the world. The eighth-century prophets use the word “covenant” sparingly, but when they do this two-fold structure is also evident. The prophets never promise that the nations will be included in Israel’s covenants.…

  • Cross-shaped Wisdom (1 Corinthians 1)

    This was originally published on the Biblical Theology Briefings website (beginningwithmoses.org) in 2006. The Biblical Theology Briefings aim to provide worked examples of sermons that apply the insights of evangelical biblical theology. I recently preached at the commissioning of two dear friends of mine who have now gone as missionaries to work as ministers in…

  • Permanent link to acovenantalism series

    For those who are following the series on acovenantalism – I’ve now created a page with a list of links to every post in the series. The list will be updated whenever a new post appears.

  • Two kinds of covenant at Sinai: law and mediation

    Just as there are two distinct but related covenants described in Genesis 12-22, so also there are two distinct but related covenants stemming from the events at Sinai. Firstly, there is the well-known covenant of law, which is a covenant between God and Israel. But the word “covenant” is also used to speak of another…

  • Be careful what you promise

    On the Sola Panel: Do you know for sure that you are going to be with God in Heaven? If God were to ask you, “Why should I let you into My Heaven?” what would you say? Have you ever used these questions (or a variation on them) to talk about the impact of the…

  • The Gospel and Ageing

    From the Sola Panel What is the most polite way to refer to an old person? Have you noticed how the words we collectively use to refer to old people in the media and in private conversation keep changing? It’s a strange process. We start using a word or phrase, for example, ‘old man’, ‘old…

  • What is the significance of circumcision in Genesis?

    Why did God give circumcision to Abraham (Gen 17:9–14)? What is it for? It’s not very useful as a “boundary marker” or “badge of membership”, because under most circumstances people can’t tell whether you’ve been circumcised! Furthermore, lots of other ancient peoples practiced circumcision. Can we discern why circumcision is commanded in the story of…

  • The two covenants with Abraham – part 2 (Genesis 15, 17 and 22)

    In the previous post we saw how Genesis 12:1-3 makes two distinct but related sets of promises. The first set of promises involves blessing to Abraham (Gen 12:1-2c). The second set of promises involves blessing through Abraham to the world (Gen 12:2d-3). Following Paul Williamson’s analysis, we will now see how these two sets of…

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