The land mourns and pines away, Lebanon is shamed and withers; Sharon is like a desert plain, And Bashan and Carmel lose their foliage. Isaiah 33:9 Pines Away – The essence of sin is chaos and destruction. Sin is not simply the violation of moral requirements. Sin destroys order in the world. That means sin…
But he who doubts is condemned if he eats, because his eating is not from faith; and whatever is not from faith is sin. Romans 14:23 Sin – Kenneth Bailey makes an interesting observation about this verse. “We expect [Paul] to say ‘whatsoever is not of faith is unbelief.’ But for Paul the opposite of…
If it is the anointed priest who has incurred guilt, so that blame falls upon the people, he shall offer for the sin which he has committed . . . Leviticus 4:3 Committed – There is an important difference between the act of sin (deliberate or unintentional) and the consequence of sin (guilt). They are…
There is no soundness in my flesh because of Your rage, nor peace in my bones because of my sin. Psalm 38:3 There Is No – Any dictionary will tell you that ‘ayin is a particle of negation. It means “no, none or nothing.” It’s used thousands of times in Scripture to negate something. Here…
For my life is spent with grief, and my years with sighing; my strength fails because of my iniquity, and my bones waste away. Psalm 31:11 Fails – Sin contains its own consequences. There is no separation between the act and the result. Unlike our system of justice, the Hebrew view does not think of…
Of David, a contemplation. Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Psalm 32:1 Transgression/ Sin – Hebrew poetry rhymes ideas, not sounds. One Hebrew technique is parallel construction. In this technique, the first idea is matched with a second parallel idea and one idea elaborates the thought of the other. In…
If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9 Sins – John doesn’t write, “Confess your sin.” He writes, “Confess your sins.” It’s plural. He is not writing about the big block of willful rebellion against the source of light…
Now to Him being able to keep you without stumbling, and to set you before His glory without blemish . Jude 24 Without Stumbling – Zodhiates poses a question about this verse: “Is Jude promising we shall live our lives without ever stumbling?” If we answer, “yes,” then Jude seems to stand in contradiction…
“Do you think that these Galileans were sinners beyond all the Galileans?” Luke 13:2 Beyond – How do we know who is really a sinner? Well, the answer is obvious, isn’t it? We just look how they died. If they were really bad, then they die in horrible ways. After all, God doesn’t punish the…
“and I will cut him off from among My people. So you will know that I am YHWH.” Ezekiel 14:8 Cut Off – The Hebrew phrase that describes acknowledging my sin as the first step in repentance is ha-karat ha-chet. Literally, this is “the sin that cuts off.” These words tell us that unless and…
