Bible Review, Fall 1986

Of all the books of the Bible in which poetry plays a role, Psalms is the one set of texts whose poetic status has been most strongly felt throughout the generations—regardless of the vagaries of translation, typographical arrangement of verses or notions about biblical literary form. This unwavering perception that the psalms are formal […]

Scholars know it, but most lay people don’t. The first two and a half verses of the Book of Ezra (Ezra 1:1–3a) are identical to the last two verses of the second Book of Chronicles (2 Chronicles 36:22–23). These repeated verses at the end of Chronicles are called “catch-lines.” In ancient times, catch-lines were […]

In recent issues of Bible Review, two quite different articles have examined the infancy narratives in Matthew and Luke—the only two Gospels that include an account of Jesus’ infancy. The first article—by Kenneth R. R. Gros Louis—was a literary study in which the author examined the differing literary techniques used by these two Gospel […]

In biblical times, aspects of nature that are easily explained by modern science were considered mysteries, and sparked a sense of awe. Although today, a scientific explanation is often available, nature still has the power to arouse wonder in us. On the other hand, once a phenomenon is scientifically analyzed and explained, it may […]

In the Book of Genesis, when Adam sees Eve, he immediately says “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh” (Genesis 2:23). The narrator adds, “Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother and shall cleave unto his wife; and they shall be one flesh” (Genesis 2:24). In […]