This week we studied the beginning of Paul’s sermon at the Areopagus (beyond verse 22)! Paul seized the opportunity to tell the Athenians and Areopagus Council about the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in terms they would understand. His prop was an altar to an “unknown god,” and Paul used that as his jumping…
This week we read through Paul’s speech at the Areopagus, and although I thought we were going to discuss more of it, we basically made it through one verse. It’s not my fault! ? We discussed the different translations of a rare Greek word in Acts 17:22 “deisidaimonesterous” (lit: δεισιδαιμονεστέρους). Was Paul following the classical…
This week we summed up the previous weeks’ (and months’) lessons about Athens, the Areopagus, Aeschylus’ play “The Oresteia,” Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Epicurus, and Zeno. We also discussed Paul’s broad education in Tarsus and Jerusalem, and how his travels informed his discussion in Athens. We had a great discussion about everything from classical Greek philosophy,…
This week we got back to where we had left off with the “peroratio” (i.e., conclusion) of Stephen’s speech in Acts 7. It’s at this point the reason for his rehashing the history of Israel becomes crystal clear: Stephen has been building a case not merely to proclaim his innocence, but also to prove the…
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This week we continued our in-depth study of Stephen’s defense speech. He brought up the consistent problem of idol worship—both at the foot of Mt. Sinai and in the wilderness during the 40 years of wandering. He began laying the foundation for his argument (?) that the Temple should not have been built which we…
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The question is: “Why are the biblical authors so interested in the role of chariot divisions? What do chariots represent?” I have to admit that I was really surprised at how many times the word “chariots” appears in the Bible. I guess it makes sense due to the military focus of many of the books; however, finding “chariots”…