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Is "wait" in Isaiah 40:31 active or passive?
Some translations have this verse reading "They that wait (up)on the Lord" (eg. NKJV) while others have "They that wait for the Lord" (eg. ESV) and still others "Those that hope in the Lord". (eg NIV)
What is the meaning of the verb here? Is it…
Waggers
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Jesus and the adulterous woman: was stoning a practical possiblity?
In John 8:5, the Pharisees ask Jesus:
In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say? (NIV)
Was stoning a woman for adultery often/sometimes done during Jesus' days, or was this more of a rhetorical question? I thought…
tbleher
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Why was Elijah so afraid of Jezebel that he fled immediately after performing a great miracle?
In 1 Kings 18, verse 16 onwards we read that Elijah performed a miracle.
He prays to God and brings fire down from heaven to consume the sacrifice.
He is shown as a courageous prophet who is not afraid of King Ahab or the followers of Baal.
But in…
Jeril Nadar
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Was Potiphar, being a captain of an Egyptian guard, likely a eunuch?
In Genesis, we read the infamous story of Joseph and Potiphar's wife. Potiphar's wife (who is named Zuleikha, at least according Sefer HaYashar) repeatedly makes sexual advances on Joseph, and as we know, Joseph consistently stays true to his morals…
Butterfly and Bones
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Is there a literary dependence of 2 Peter upon the Revelation?
This is a mild suspicion I've held for a while, and on occasion I will attempt a search to see if any scholars have expressed the view, but so far I have found nothing other than generic bible verse cross-references in footnotes (i.e. only noting…
user2910
16
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What is the meaning of "poor in spirit" in Matthew 5:3
Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. - KJV Matthew 5:3
How can the "poor in spirit" get the kingdom of heaven? Is there a similar usage else where?
Jomet
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In Luke 7:18-23, why did John the Baptist ask Jesus if he was the Messiah since he baptized Jesus and heard God speak about Jesus?
In Luke 7:18-23, it is written,
18 The disciples of John reported to him about all these things. 19 Summoning two of his disciples, John sent them to the Lord, saying, “Are You the Expected One, or do we look for someone else?” 20 When the men came…
Edeline Salvant
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What does "because of the angels" refer to in 1 Cor 11:10?
In 1 Cor 11:10, Paul writes regarding head coverings and headship:
That is why a wife ought to have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels. (ESV)
I don't mean to get too deeply into a discussion of head coverings here; what…
Ray
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What does "Christian" mean (Acts 11:26)?
The word "Christian" is first used in Acts 11:26.
and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught a significant number of people. Now it was in Antioch that the disciples were…
James Shewey
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What factors bear on the authenticity of Matthew 23:14?
Modern translations of the New Testament omit some verses found in the King James Bible (missing verses). The reason for the differences is that modern translations use the Nestle-Aland edition of the Greek New Testament (the critical text) where…
Revelation Lad
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Does Genesis 1:2 refer to the Spirit or a wind?
Genesis 1:2 reads (KJV):
And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.
Other translations (ESV, NIV, NASB, JPS 1917) also indicate that the subject of this sentence is the “Spirit of God”. However, some, with JPS 1985 (cf. NRSV),…
Eurickah
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How Is the Date of Composition of the Gospels Estimated?
So considering that the oldest copies of the gospels are dated to around 400 AD (I'm thinking of the Codex Sinaiticus), how do scholars go about estimating the date of composition of the gospels? I mean I'm sure there are some textual clues; I mean…
Onorio Catenacci
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Are the Psalms superscripts misplaced?
I recently ran across a theory that a portion of the superscripts of many psalms was intended as a postscript to the prior psalm. In that arrangement, לַמְנַצֵּ֥חַ (lamnaṣṣēaḥ; to the choirmaster) + optional prepositional phrase should be appended…
Susan
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Why are there extra dots in Genesis 33:4?
I was reading Genesis 33 and noticed extra dots (i.e. not part of the niqqud that I understand) above the letters of “and he kissed him” in verse 4 (picture from archive.org's Biblia Hebraica):
and he fell on his neck and kissed him, and they…
Susan
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Does Isaiah 7:14 refer to a virgin?
There have been quite a few debates on why the word παρθένος (“virgin”) is used in the Septuagint of Isaiah 7:14 when translating the Hebrew word עלמה ("a young maiden”).1 For context let us go through a few ancient translations of Isaiah…
Adithia Kusno
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