Justice At The City Gate

For 25 years the Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary has been the go-to Bible reference resource for lay Bible students, teachers, pastors, academic courses, and libraries. Now this bestselling dictionary has been UPDATED with 200 new articles and over 500 new photos compiling a collection of over 6,500 articles from Aaron to Zuzite are written so as to equip the reader for greater competence in understanding and interpreting the Scriptures. TAn excellent companion to the Holman Illustrated Bible Commentary.

What is the relationship between justice and mercy? This is not merely a speculative question; it goes to the heart of many of our activities as human beings in both our personal and social relationships. How can I live with my fellow human beings in ways that are both just and merciful? The Beatitude of Mercy is a meditative exploration of this question. While it recognizes the importance of social justice--as a mutual indebtedness--it argues that without social mercy, even justice itself cannot save us. Mercy is not a countermeasure or complement to justice; rather, mercy "watches over justice." Mercy does not seek to thwart or deny justice's rightful claims, but to ensure that our practices of justice are never conducted solely according to calculation and measurement, but are also weighed or motivated by mercy and love.

In the pages of the Bible, we come to know God through Jesus Christ. Thus the importance of the Bible for our spiritual formation cannot be overstated. If we are honest, though, the Bible is not always easy to understand. For example, the places named in the Bible can seem strange, and the number of people mentioned is virtually countless. This comprehensive dictionary intends to help people read the Bible with increased understanding and confidence. It contains articles on major topics as well as places and people, even if they just appear in a single verse in the Bible. Its articles cover theological topics, biblical words, biblical imagery, and historical topics. This A to Z dictionary includes more than •1,700 full-color pages •400 color illustrations, maps, and photos •5,000 articles by leading evangelical scholars The Baker Illustrated Bible Dictionary is an informative, colorful, and easy-to-understand resource that will be an indispensable reference for your own personal study or in preparation for teaching.

Can the Old Testament help us in keeping the excesses of capitalism in check? How can a book that goes on about "justice and righteousness," but says "there will always be poor people in the land" and accepts slavery have anything to say to us about social justice? Did kings of Israel draft their subjects--and which subjects--for forced labor? What does it mean when the Psalms say God is coming to judge the world? Is charity justice?--or is justice more than charity? Does Genesis give us the right to use the earth and its creatures as we like? These are some of the questions that Walter Houston asks, and tries to answer, in this book of essays from his work over the last twenty-five years.

Habel selects the method, materials to be covered, and scholars to be cited, in his humbling task of writing a commentary on such a classic work as The Book of Job--a text that is complex and unclear at many points. (Biblical Studies)

Yeshua with his father and brother go to Magdala as hired carpenters to repair boats. He is caught in the middle of a bloody massacre and is traumatised. It is a baptism of fire for him. He goes to a breakaway community in Qumran to reflect. The community’s main function is to collect the fragile fragments of scripture and copy them onto fresh parchments. He acquires an in-depth knowledge of the scriptures. He spends seven years there and is elected as leader, the Teacher of Righteousness. Yeshua visits a similar group in Alexandria, Egypt, called the Assayya. They specialise in healing. King Ashoka of India had sent emissaries to Egypt with Hindus and Buddhist monks who assimilate with the Assayyas. Yeshua learns a new way of meditating and the art of healing. Realizing that this idyllic hermitic way of life is but an escape from reality, Yeshua leaves to be among the common people. He walks among people living between poverty and destitution besieged by malnutrition, physical impairment, disease and sickness from which they know no medical remedy. They are also overburdened by taxation and debt while the rich and powerful live a different life. Yeshua addresses these issues with practical solutions. He urges the people to protest unjust taxation and not to listen blindly to all the teachings of the Temple incurring the wrath of the elite. People come to listen to him. Ten men and six women become his close followers. They set up a base camp on the shore of the Sea of Galilee and move around Galilee. King Herod who beheaded John the Baptist is after Yeshua. With his followers he leaves his territory and travels beyond Galilee to foreign lands where they meet people who worship different gods and practise religions condemned by Judaism. They meet merchants who have travelled the Silk Route and the Incense Route and dialogue with them on their beliefs. It is a religious and cultural shock for him and his followers. On returning to base camp Yeshua teaches his followers of the medicinal use of herbs and sends them on mission. Finally, they join a caravan to Jerusalem. They confront Caiaphas, the High Priest and Pontius Pilate who have conspired to steal money from the Temple treasury, the Qorban. Together with the Zealots they protest corruption and religious misguidance of the Temple. Yeshua is arrested, tried by the Sanhedrin and condemned to death. Since the Romans had withdrawn the use of capital punishment by the Sanhedrin, they take him to Pilate and accuse Yeshua of stirring up trouble against Roman control. Pilate says Ecce Homo and orders his crucifixion.