Many bloggers take advantage of this time of the year to reflect on their most popular posts. Now we know there is a time to follow the crowd (Zech 8:23), and a time not to follow the crowd (Ex 23:2). And I believe the present time to be akin to the former and not the latter. So here we go.
This post lists the top 10 viewed posts this year, from among the posts we wrote this year. Next week, we’ll list the top 10 viewed posts from the full KW archive. May these lists enable you to be warm and well fed while you celebrate the season with joy and delight.
10. Topical Index for Proverbs
In this post, I shared the fruit of more than four years’ study of the book of Proverbs. It’s not perfect, and if I had more time, I would spiff it up and reorganize it quite a bit. But being what it is, it may have proved useful to some folks, as this page had the tenth highest view-count of all we wrote this year. I’m still not planning to add this to the resources page, so this might be your last chance to find it before it gets buried in this site’s archives.
9. Context Matters: Righteous Deeds Are Like Filthy Rags
One of only six “Context Matters” posts to be written this year (sorry for slacking!), and the first of two to appear on this list, this post examines Isaiah’s famous statement to show that it is both more shocking and more close-to-home than is typically communicated. There are several passages that could be used to instruct unbelievers about salvation by faith alone. That is a glorious truth, and the church should teach it! But we need not resort to pulling this colorful simile out of context to make the point.
8. When a Name Goes Missing in the Bible
In Genesis 21, Moses uses names, repeatedly, for all of the characters except one. That should make us sit up and take notice. In observation we gather the fuel we need for the fire of interpretation, and observing odd insertions or omissions is no exception.
7. Context Matters: The Whole Armor of God
The second “Context Matters” post to appear on this list examines the famous passage from Ephesians 6 about the helmet of salvation and shield of faith. Far from being a cute picture for coloring pages and children’s Bibles, this passage masterfully drives home Paul’s argument for unity in the church of Jesus Christ. Your real enemy is never your fellow church member who disagrees with you. So next time you get in a fight with a brother or sister—perhaps even within your own household—please let the whole armor of God strengthen you to the ends of peace and victory over the devil’s divisive schemes.
6. We Love to Give Gold Stars
Ryan struck a chord with this post, where he challenges our proclivity to label every Bible character as a good guy or bad guy. We want to identify each particular action as either praiseworthy or condemnable. The problem with this is that the Bible will not bow to our desires for quick labeling. Applying narrative texts requires the hard, slow work of wisdom.
5. The First Commentator to Plead His Case
Farther down this list are my Ten Commandments for Commentary Usage. This post offers, ahem, commentary on the fourth commandment: You shall not read only one commentary, but shall invite a plurality of voices into the conversation. A plurality of commentaries is helpful because, otherwise, the first one we read will be presumed to be right. And we really need to demystify the presumed priesthood of experts in our day.
4. Reading Across the Chapter Breaks in 2 Timothy
Did you know that the chapter (and verse) divisions in your Bible are not original to the text? And they have perhaps the most dramatic effect on our reading of the Bible. Those large, bolded numbers (usually accompanied by section headings) scream at us: “Start reading here!” and “Stop reading now!” But when we learn to read across those chapter breaks, our grasp of the author’s argument sees much improvement. Here is an example in 2 Timothy.
3. What We Miss When We Skip the Book of Ezra
The book of Ezra is an odd duck. It bears the name of a man who doesn’t appear in its first half. Though titled like a minor prophet, this is a book of history, one far shorter than most historical books in Scripture. And it is one of the few portions of God’s word set after the Babylonian exile. It’s got long lists of names in chapters 2, 8, and 10. But Ryan shows how this little book has much to offer.
2. Ten Commandments for Commentary Usage
The OIA Bible study method ought not be incompatible with rigorous usage of commentaries. But there is an everpresent danger of relying on commentaries more than the text, or of allowing commentaries to prevent you from wrestling with the text as you ought. Therefore the main question for commentary usage is not whether but when. These commandments for commentary usage include: You shall not avoid or ignore commentaries from belief in self-sufficiency to study the Scriptures. You shall not pick up a commentary as soon as Bible study is “hard.” You shall make every effort to form interpretive conclusions or questions about interpretations before consulting a commentary.
1. Song of Songs: The Intoxication of True Love in its Time
When the Lord God made the heavens and the earth, there was only one thing that he declared was not good: the man’s being alone. So God promptly invented romantic love, and his word is very clear about how such love works. This post provides an interpretive walkthrough of Solomon’s Greatest Song, showing that we shouldn’t have to choose between interpreting it literally or allegorically.
