What Do We Know about the Lost Tribes of Israel?
November 15, 2021
You may or may not have heard about the 10 lost of tribes of Israel growing up. Here is what scholars believe happened to these lost tribes, and where they are today.
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Articles by Betty Dunn
What Was the Firmament That God Created on the Second Day?
October 29, 2021
On the second day of the Creation, God commanded there be a firmament separating the oceans from the waters above. What is this firmament exactly?
6 Beautiful Lessons from the Life of Rachel in the Bible
October 12, 2021
Rachel in the Bible is a quiet character who occasionally speaks her mind and sometimes acts with questionable integrity.
Are the Sermon on the Plain and Sermon on the Mount the Same Thing?
September 28, 2021
Jesus preached the Sermon on the Plain after a night of praying on a mountainside and a morning spent choosing his 12 disciples (Luke 6). He delivered his sermon on level ground and the Sermon on the Plain’s message is grounded in real-life issues.
8 Beautiful Life Lessons from Moses' Brother Aaron
August 13, 2021
The most famous Levites born during Israel’s enslavement in Egypt were Aaron and his younger siblings, Moses and Miriam. Aaron was three years older than Moses (Exodus 7:7), yet Moses was chosen to lead the Hebrews out of Egypt.
Are You Waiting for God at the Pool of Bethesda?
July 29, 2021
There was a crowd of people at the Pool of Bethesda, but this lame man was the only person healed by Jesus that day, according to the Gospel of John.
Why Does the Way that Seems Right to Man Always Lead to Destruction?
July 21, 2021
“There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end, it leads to destruction” Proverbs 14:12. What is the “right” way to live?
Who Was Joanna, One of the Women Who Followed Jesus?
July 12, 2021
In the Gospels, Joanna is listed as one of the women who accompany Jesus in his traveling ministry. The women in the group perform much of the cooking and packing chores as they journey through Galilee to Jerusalem.
Who Was Rizpah and What Does Her Story Teach Us about the Importance of Grief?
June 1, 2021
Rizpah is the sad mother of the two sons of Saul who are sacrificed for tribal peace. Rizpah’s love and piety—and David’s joining Rizpah in a memorial and burial of the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan—move God to end a three-year drought and famine in the region.
What Does “the Kingdom of God Is within You” Mean Exactly?
April 20, 2021
Adding to this promise of living in God’s kingdom is Luke’s inspiring statement that the kingdom of God is within you (Luke 17:21). Jesus’ teachings about God within us contrasted sharply with the extensive body of rules to follow in the Jewish Torah.
Who Exactly Were the Philistines?
April 12, 2021
The ancient Philistines were in the land of Canaan before Moses and the Israelites claimed it as their Promised Land from God. The conflict over Canaan territory and religious and cultural differences between Israelites and Philistines led to many battles between the two nations. In the Old Testament, Philistines are viewed as “bad guys,” long-term enemies of Israel, from the time they first encountered each other. Moses sent twelve Hebrew scouts or “spies” to survey Canaan before the Israelis entered it and they were terrified when they met the Philistines. Moses led the Israelites around Philistine settlements in Canaan to avoid conflict with them.
The best-known Hebrew-Philistine encounter is found in I Samuel 17, when young David, the future king, victoriously battled the Philistine giant Goliath. David landed a shot from a rock in his slingshot to take down this imposing enemy. This narrative illustrates God’s power to give an underdog a win, no matter what the odds.
In the fields of philosophy and aesthetics, the term philistine is now used to describe a person who does not value art, spirituality, or the intellect. A National Public Radio article labeled the Philistines "uncouth louts." In academic circles, a philistine is a person with limited knowledge of a topic. In addition, a philistine is deemed to be a person who is very materialistic and concerned with earning money. Altogether, a Philistine does not sound like someone you’d like to sit next to on public transportation!
Photo credit: ©Getty Images/kieferpix
Why Did David Ask God, "Create in My a Clean Heart"?
March 12, 2021
Like king and prophet David in Psalm 51:10, you can ask God to “create in me a clean heart.” I think of the woman at the well. She was drawing drinking water, no doubt, but I like to think some of her water was drawn for cleaning.