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PHall | October 26, 2009
Notice “gifts” is plural – did Abel offer more than just an animal sacrifice, and all his gifts were accepted because he offered the best? That is what is hinted at in the original text (Gen.4). Or is “gifts” referring to his all the animals he brought? Or if his faith counted as one of […]
PHall | October 26, 2009
An intriguing side-note, if indeed Cain was the first-born (and there is no reason to doubt otherwise), is that very few first-born sons in Genesis fared well: Cain/Abel; Ishmael/Isaac; Esau/Jacob; Reuban/11 brothers; and Manassah/Ephraim.
PHall | October 26, 2009
How powerful is the word of God? By it the worlds were prepared. Read Genesis 1 and be in awe of the reaction to, God said. This same God made promises that He kept and keeps. We can have confidence in this God, that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him
PHall | October 26, 2009
This small seemingly insignificant pronoun is profoundly important. The Hebrew writer generically references the men of old gaining approval through faith. He also makes a manifest of Patriarchal and Jewish Heroes. In between he mentions, we. This included the saints he wrote to with the heroes of faith. We had already experienced the faith necessary […]
PHall | October 26, 2009
Some ironies of faith: Faith is both the assurance of that which is unseen in God, and the display of that which is unseen in me. It is by faith that the unseen is proved as if seen (vv.13,27) Hebrews 11:13,27 13 All these died in faith, without receiving the promises, but having seen them […]
PHall | October 26, 2009
An interesting exercise in Hebrews 11 is to discover what was not seen; yet believed in as if seen: v.3 No one saw God prepare the worlds (Lit., ages) by His word v.7 Noah had not yet seen the flood. Some doubt any at that time has even seen rain. v.8 Abraham left for […]
PHall | October 26, 2009
The NASB translators chose the word assurance over the KJV reading of substance. In the original, upostasis literally means, that which stands under. “It is common in the papyri in business documents as the basis or guarantee of transactions. `And as this is the essential meaning in Heb.11:1 we venture to suggest the translation `Faith […]
PHall | October 26, 2009
Thought – In studying faith, we soon understand that faith is trust. To have faith in someone, in God, is to trust them. But do we understand what it means to trust? Is trust the faith that someone will do what I think they should? Is trust based upon me or them? The point is, […]
PHall | October 26, 2009
1 For the Law [Specifically the application is made to the sacrificial system, but elsewhere the same principle applies to all of the Law (i.e., temple], since it has only a shadow [Apparently a primary word; “shade” or a shadow (literally or figuratively [darkness of error or an adumbration]): – shadow. (Strong)] of the good […]
PHall | October 23, 2009
What does this phrase, “dead works,” mean? It is commonly thought that it means dead works as the works of the Law of Moses (also used in 6:1). However, it is possible that there the term “dead works” does not refer to O.T. sacrifices, as assumed, but rather to the sins needing the sacrifices. In […]