In his commentary on the New Testament, J. H. Bavinck argues that the wise men from the East had five guides who led them to the one who was born King of the Jews (Matt 2:2).[1] His exposition is instructive for developing the background of Matthew 2, so this reflection is a summary of his comments. The first guide for the magi that Bavinck notes is attentiveness. It is almost too obvious to note, but these wise men had to have their attention simultaneously directed toward

As Matthew moves from Jesus’ genealogy to his birth, two installments in Jesus’ origin story, he focuses on Joseph’s critical role in legally establishing the link between Mary’s son and the lineage of King David. One question we might ask ourselves is, “Why does it matter?” Isn’t the testimony of Matthew and Luke that Jesus was born of the virgin Mary by the power of the Holy Spirit sufficient to establish his uniqueness and importance for the salvation of God’s people? As

Even a casual investigation of Matthew’s genealogy (Matt 1:1-17) shows that his concern is not to fastidiously reproduce a hereditary list or offer a precise record for drawing Jesus’ family tree. While the lineage from Abraham to David might seem relatively straightforward, several generations are collapsed into a few names elsewhere, e.g. in the succession of kings. And, it is worth pointing out that this telescoping of the genealogy can be checked against the Old Testament

It is often said that Christ’s first advent is integrally connected with his second advent, and so we do well to consider Christ’s second coming during Christmas. It could also be said Christ’s triumph over death on Resurrection Sunday is integrally connected with his final triumph over death on the last day. In a way, the encounter that Jesus’ two disciples had with him on the road to Emmaus is a picture of the time leading up to Christ’s second coming. This reflection consi

With the story of Job brought to a conclusion in chapter 42, there might be a loose end or two that is still hanging. In the first place, one might wonder at the starkly statement tucked within v11, i.e. Job’s family and friends comforted him “for all the evil that the Lord had brought upon him” (ESV). Secondly, one might wonder how a fresh set of children is adequate restoration. Are humans like livestock that can be replaced? Finally, one might have a general dissatisfactio

God’s answer to Job comes in two parts. It is not that chapters 40-41 cover the same ground as 38-39 in more focused detail. Rather, they advance the argument by focusing on a complementary perspective. The key comes in Job 40:7-9 (ESV), “Dress for action like a man; I will question you, and you make it known to me. 8  Will you even put me in the wrong? Will you condemn me that you may be in the right? 9  Have you an arm like God, and can you thunder with a voice like his?” I

In His first speech responding to Job, God bombards Job with questions with the intent of humbling Job, reminding him of the Creator-creature distinction. In the first stanza of God’s speech (38:4-7), the Lord asks Job if he was either present or a participant in the building project of creation. At the laying of the cornerstone, God states in verse seven that “ the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy.” The morning stars and the sons of God are

If you’re at the end of a long flight, and your plane is in its final descent, and you can almost touch the runway, then one of the more disheartening things you can experience is an aborted landing, or go-around. You were almost at the finish line, almost able to dislodge yourself from that seat, but now you’ve got a few more minutes of flying ahead of you. Such might be your experience when you flip from Job 31 to Job 32. After all, in chapter 31, Job has made his final def

The first twelve verses of Job 28 emphasize the greatness and glory of human ingenuity and craftsmanship. The poet describes, in almost divine terms, the process and product of mining. Considered in isolation, this says something important about what humanity can do. We can achieve marvelous feats of engineering and exploration. Not only have we plumbed the depths of the earth, bringing light to places that have never seen it, but we have also searched the sky (even visited

This week, we take up Job’s boldly imaginative presentation of a courtroom scene in which he initially puts God in the dock (Job 23:1-7). As Job 23 develops, however, the situation reverses, subtly at first, as Job transitions from offense to defense (vv8-12) and ultimately ends with a portrait of God’s sovereignty that terrifies Job (vv13-16). To be sure, Job does not give up his conviction that this calamity is not a function of sin, but his claim is more chastened by the e

The outburst of faith that is found in Job 19:23-27 is quite encouraging for us to consider, though the interpretation of these words has been contested in the history of biblical scholarship. The intent of this reflection is to narrow in on one point of interpretation that reinforces the idea that Job is, in fact, making a confession of faith in the only living and true God. To begin, we should note that in vv23-24 Job expresses his wish that his testimony, which likely incl

In his speeches to Job, Zophar provides the third of three portraits of pastoral malpractice. While Zophar does not materially depart from the other friends’ application of a mechanical deed-consequence relationship or retribution principle, he does seem to gesture towards a positive solution. As one commentator has summarized Zophar’s speech in Job 11, “Zophar strives to impress Job with the awesomeness of God’s wisdom. God’s ways are too profound for a mere human being to u