Mary had a front-row seat for an unbelievable life full of amazing stories: the angel Gabriel showing up out of the blue to tell her that she, a virgin, was pregnant (Luke 1:26-38)-and not just expecting, but expecting the Son of God; the baby’s birth in an animal shed far from home (Luke 2:1-7); the odd parade of well-wishers saying beautiful and occasionally frightening things (Matt 2:1-12; Luke 2:8-38); the mad dash to Egypt to escape Herod’s wrath (Matt 2:13-14).
Continue reading WOMEN OF THE BIBLE (MARY “THE MOTHER AND FIRST DISCIPLE OF JESUS”)Tag Archives: Sadducees
DEFINITION OF THE DAY (SILENCE)
Absence of sound. The Bible uses silence in several ways: as reverence to God (Hab 2:20), as a symbol of death (Ps 94:17), as a symbol of Sheol (Ps 115:17), and as an expression of despair (Lam 2:10). It is a way to shut up the opposition (Matt 22:34). It is also used as a dramatic pause following the opening of the seventh seal in Rev 8:1. Continue reading DEFINITION OF THE DAY (SILENCE)
MANNERS & CUSTOMS OF THE BIBLE (SPORTS)
Athletic Sports
Entertainment and spectator/participatory sports did not develop until Greek and Roman times. Races had been run in Israel (Jeremiah 12:5), but they were not for entertainment. It was the promotion of sports in the Greek fashion in 170 BC that led to the division among Jews between Sadducees and Hasidim.