Rembrandt (1606–1669) Sacrifice of Isaac (Wikimedia)

Usually I try to present the ideas in these podcasts so that anyone can understand. However, this time if you cannot read Scripture except in translation and you have not learned to use an interlinear or computer Bible to get beyond that handicap, this podcast may be less accessible.

It deals with the naming of God, in one of the most challenging and difficult stories in the Bible, the near-sacrifice (or binding) of Isaac.

An unheard of second warning, in this podcast I don’t reach any conclusions, I either leave that to you, or you will have to wait till I am inspired to make a follow-up ‘cast

So, here’s the link to the audio: Would a rose smell as sweet? What’s in a name? Genesis 22

God as creator from the Sistine Chapel (photo Wikipedia)

I’ve already a podcast on Jonah 1:7-8 Direct speech in biblical narratives if you want a fill in between the last podcast and this one.

Had you noticed? We were eight verses into the book and Jonah had not said one word. In Jonah 1:1-8 not a peep out of Jonah the prophet, so 1:9 where he finally speaks has to be significant…

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"It was slightly disturbing to find giant 'Thomas the Tank Engine' faces looking up from the ground" by oxyman

In these two verses we get some more clues about how to read the book of Jonah, we’ll notice how everything is big, and how the ship has personality. I’ll suggest that Jonah is in some ways like a children’s story, larger than life and painted in bright primary colours. I’ll even suggest that there are hints the telling is like Thomas the Tank Engine

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Jeremiah, Russian icon from first quarter of 18th cen. Iconostasis of Kizhi monastery, Karelia, Russia

A series of passages in Jeremiah stand out because of their contents which presents itself as powerful debates about Jeremiah, his call, his enemies and his God. In some of them Jeremiah seems to be speaking alone, in otgher God responds.

These “Confessions of Jeremiah are: Jer 11:18-20; 12:1-6; 15:10-21, 17:14-18; 18:18-23; 20:7-13 (the exact details of the list are debatable, but its broad lines are well established.

This podcast introduces Jeremiah’s confessions, subsequent podcasts in the series will examine each in turn.

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Road to Damascus today photo by upyernoz

“The Road” or “The Way” common Biblical picture language for a way of life or the direction we are “going”, but it is also used several times in Acts (almost, or probably, only in Acts) as a name for being a Christian. It is a good name because metanoia, repentance, is about turning round and going a different way. Acts also is a book about journeys, with lots of individual voyages, and also the journey of the gospel from Jerusalem to Rome – from Jewish sect to global faith.

In this chapter we hear of Paul’s journeys – the one he planned and the one he ended up taking, that took him from being persecutor to preacher, from grand inquisitor to ardent follower.

The other name for Christian followers in this chapter is the adelphoi, brothers and sisters – it’s interesting question what is a good literal translation today of adelphoi for though the singular adelphos means a brother, and a different word means a sister, often the plural adelphoi explicitly includes women as well as men. So, usually in Bible (unless we have reason to believe only men are meant) the best rendering today is “brothers and sisters”.

Paul’s story is a great example too of how God takes and uses people as they are, does not remake us into different people but redeems the ones we are. So, Saul the enthusiast, stringent, hard-line Pharisee enforcer becomes Paul the ardent, flexible but demanding Christian evangelist.

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OK this story must be one of the best-known that Jesus ever told, everyone has heard it! And if not (at least if they speak English or French or just about any other European language) they know the main character’s name – The Good Samaritan. Except that, what we know if we know this, is all wrong!

Jesus was a prophet so to understand what he’s doing here we need to remind ourselves how Prophets work. So after a quick recap on prophets we think about what Jesus the prophet is doing when he tells this story.

For more on prophets try these:

• E100-36: 2 Samuel 11:1 – 12:25: David and Bathsheba?
• E100 Week 10: Prophets: three principles to unlock the code
• E100-46: Isaiah 51:1 – 53:12: Reading prophets for pleasure and profit
• E100-47: Jeremiah 1:1 – 3:5: Getting started as a prophet
• E100-50: Malachi 1:1 – 4:6: The book that makes the bridge

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The judgement of Solomon by Gaetano Gandolfi (1734–1802)

In just two chapters we get some of the most beautiful and inspiring, and some of the grubbiest and most bloodthirsty stories in the Bible. It is no wonder that telling the stories of David (with Saul and Solomon and perhaps the rest) as a serial, like a soap opera has the audience panting for more

In this podcast I’ll again point to clues to how we can, and (often of more use) how we should NOT “read” Bible stories.

I’ll also make a shameless plug for my Not Only a Father an online book about the use of motherly language and imagery to describe God in the Bible and in later Christian theology, which you can discuss, argue with or ask questions about as you read – and if you can’t see how that connection fits this passage… then listen to the podcast

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Bathsheba goes to David by Francesco Salviati (1510–1563)

These two chapters mark the turning point in David’s story.

They offer vital clues also to how we “read” biblical narratives.

• Nathan’s story within a story provides hints, abouit the nature of narrative meaning
• David’s strange behaviour  during his child’s illness and on his death provides both a clue to an interpretative rule, and some good practice

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by didbygraham

Bible stories, with a few exceptions (maybe some parables for example) do NOT have nice neat “morals”. If you want to say “and the moral of the story is…” don’t read the Bible. But by contrast if you want people with real depth, who make it difficult for us to work out what their motives are, and therefore hard to simply place them in appropriate “boxes”, the Bible is the book for you

In this reading we’ll notice depth and complexity in two of the less central characters, Michal and Nathan. In that complexity we may find clues to living our own, often also complex, lives…

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It’s certainly hard to find a superhero in the Bible! Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and even Moses – all fail – though some of them look good the way we try to… by comparison with their neighbours, family or friends think of how Moses shines when compared to Aaron.

But Samson! He’s super strong, has a fatal weakness, and a secret identity (as a Nazirite

However in this podcast we’ll look closer, and in noticing some details of how the story is told uncover what is really going on

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