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Stats and Top Articles for 2023
I wasn’t going to do a top articles of 2023 post, but I got convicted because it is important to give God praise for what He has seen fit to do. I also think it good to leave a record of God’s faithfulness. I have received many comments and emails encouraging me about how the podcast and blogs have been used by God in a variety of ways, and I am so thankful the Lord has been pleased to do that. We are nothings, but God has chosen to allow this small ministry to bear fruit. So, as a testimony of His faithfulness, here are the 2023 stats (you can compare with the 2022 stats from last year). Most Read Blog Articles in 2023 1. David as a Man after God’s Own Heart (1 Sam 13:14) No changes here. This is probably the most read article for 4 or 5 years…
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Most Read Articles in 2022
It is interesting seeing what people like to read. Many of the articles that I thought were some of my best writing barely saw any readers. At the same time, some articles which I hesitated even publishing were very well received. Of course some of that is related to social media and search engine algorithms. It is rather scary how dependent we are on social media allowing us to see what they want us to see. Search engines are another component of readership. The majority of the traffic to the Bible Sojourner comes through search engines, but that can vary depending on how favorably Google treats the website. Before moving on to the top articles of 2022, here are some brief statistics from this year: Now, on to the top posts of 2022. 1. David as a Man after God’s Own Heart (1 Sam 13:14) This article has been the…
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What is the Longest Book of the Bible?
There are 1,189 chapters in the English bible, and 31,103 verses. But which book of the Bible is the longest? The answer surprises most people! Hint: It is not Psalms! At least depending on how you are counting. I am at least partially motivated to write this blog post on the issue of the longest book of the Bible because it makes such a great youth group trivia question! But, it also helps puts things in perspective for what you can expect when reading through the Bible. There are a variety of ways to calculate the longest book of the Bible. You can count chapters, verses, or words. You could also technically make a differentiation between Greek or Hebrew, and the common English translations that we use. Of course, it should be noted that we are not combining any books of the Bible. So, although 1 & 2 Samuel, 1…
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The Bible and Eating Humans—Cannibalism?
Okay, weird title. But, this is a question that came up recently, and it is an interesting theological exercise. Is eating human flesh wrong? We are not talking mainly about overt cannibalism, where one commits murder in order to eat human flesh (which is clearly wrong). We are mainly talking about surviving on a boat or in the mountains and the survivors eating humans (who have already died) to survive. For example, the survivors of the 1972 plane crash in the Andes who ate their companions to survive. Is it wrong for a Christian to eat human beings who have already died in order to survive? The closest the Bible gets to directly addressing this issue is in a few select prophecies to Israel that their sin will cause them famine and hardship which would result in cannibalism during sieges (cf. Lev 26:29; Deut 28:53-57; Jer 19:9; Ezek 5:10). Additionally,…
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Biblical Studies Carnival 178 (December 2020)
Happy New Year! There were many people who could not wait to put 2020 behind them, and with the turning of the calendar page, 2021 is officially here! Time will tell what 2021 will bring. But in the meantime, here is the first Biblical Studies Carnival of 2021—number 178! For those of you who might not be familiar, a Biblical Studies Carnival is a showcase of blog posts from the previous month in the area of biblical studies. It is organized by Phil Long (from Reading Acts), and last month’s carnival (#177) was hosted by Bobby Howell. I hosted #170 for the month of April in 2020, and to start 2021 I have the privilege of hosting and highlighting posts from December. 2020 Lists Of course lists are a popular item at the end of the year. Here are some that I ran across over December. Collin Hansen wrote, “My…
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Most Read Posts in 2020
It is the end-of-the-year, which brings with it the semi-obligatory posts of most visited articles this year. So, here are the ten most read posts on the Bible Sojourner for 2020. #1 David as a Man after God’s Own Heart (1 Sam 13:14) This was the most visited post in 2020 by a lot! Apparently a lot of people are searching for, “What does it mean to be a man after God’s own heart?” #2 What Was the Population of the Earth Before the Flood? This was a post I wrote awhile back, but it is a topic that a lot of people are searching for. It is a short post, but I crunch some numbers and show that it is possible the population pre-flood was much larger than is normally realized. #3 Who was Darius the Mede in Daniel? This post is actually only the first part of a…
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A Tribute to Every Mother and their Special Role
Happy Day of the Mother (aka Mother’s Day)! This Sunday marks a special day as we commemorate the value of mothers in the lives of our families. I have stated before that being a mother is very important. In a culture which attempts to mitigate the differences between males and females, these are special opportunities to point out that children relate differently to fathers than they do to mothers. God has designed the role of mom to be integral to the upbringing of children. Barna recently released a survey which looks at the relationship of teenagers and their mothers. I think the observations can be applied to children of all ages. Here are two of the major takeaways. Teenagers in the Christian home look to the mother most often for encouragement, advice, and sympathy. I find it interesting that in the same survey teenagers go to dad most often for…
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Calvin and Luther on Greek and Hebrew
Almost two weeks ago I had the privilege of being a part of our Far West Regional ETS conference. I presented a paper on the importance of Greek and Hebrew for Martin Luther and John Calvin. It was a lot of fun researching, and I hope it encourages those thinking about ministry. In essence, the paper proposes that without attention to the original languages of Greek and Hebrew, the Reformation would never have happened. It was the return to attention to detail in the original languages that prompted the break from the Church of Rome, which had drifted into stark heresy. Although not everyone has the opportunity to learn Greek and Hebrew, those who can should learn it. It is a tremendous blessing from God to have all the resources for learning Greek and Hebrew available for us today. To get the full paper, look at the publications part of…
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God Looks at the Heart
One day at the beginning of the semester, while I was a student at the Master’s College, I was working out at the campus fitness center and I noticed a fellow student working out. He was the same height as me, but bigger than I was, weighing in about 210 LBS. He had scraggly facial hair and what appeared to be a strong work ethic. I said hello to him and found out he was on the baseball team with us and had just transferred in from a Junior College out of state. My immediate thought was this: “Let’s see here… big guy who works out a lot, transfer from a Junior College… well, he is probably unsaved or an immature Christian at the very least!” Well, I ended up being dead wrong and found out he loved the Lord more than anything, and he was a solid believer all…