Biblical Illustrator Plus: Fall 2007
09/17/2007 14:00 Filed in: Faith & Reason
I highly recommend Biblical Illustrator for any student of the Bible's history. The articles are accessible for anyone of almost any background. Even if one has access to journals and such works as the Anchor Bible Dictionary (a favorite of mine), BI is sometimes a faster and more specific resource. And although I could not imagine preparing a Sunday School lesson without it, BI is also valuable for those not using Lifeway's curriculum. Every quarter I take all the articles on the CD (which are in PDF format) and organize them onto my computer's hard drive by biblical book. Then whenever I am preparing a sermon, Bible study, doing research, or anything in which I would need to access historical information about biblical ideas and customs, I have scores of articles at my disposal.
The cover of the Fall issue of BI contains a photograph of the "statue of Amenophis III from his mortuary temple on the West Bank at Thebes, famous for the so-called 'Colossi of Memnon.' Amenophis III was the first Egyptian king to be worshiped as a god in his own lifetime. Eighteenth dynasty, about 1350 B.C." The image relates to the article "King as God" by Joel F. Drinkard, Jr.
The back cover of the CD-ROM case contains these thoughts:
"The God said, 'Let us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness' ...
So God created man in His own image;
He created him in the image of God;
He created them male and female."
--Genesis 1:26-27, HCSB
How simple and yet profound! "Created" changes our origin and destiny. "In His own image" affects our understanding of human dignity, worth, and potential.
Of all creation, God created human beings in His image. That unique feature has compelled mankind to seek, to know, and to worship Him. But, how we have messed that up! People have worshiped everything from nature to creatively fashioned idols. Some have even worshiped man as god. In all of those cases, mankind has missed it.
But "In these last days, [God] has spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things and through whom He made the universe. He is the radiance of His glroy, the exact expression of His nature, and He sustains all things by His powerful word. After making purification for sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high" (Heb. 1:2-3, HCSB). In Him alone do we find worship satisfaction.
Below are the new articles in the Fall 2007 issue of Biblical Illustrator:
| Andrews, Stephen J. | Book Review: Bible Archaeology: An Exploration of the History and Culture of Early Civilizations by Alfred Hoerth and John McRay | |
| Bergen, Robert | Jerusalem's Fall to the Babylonians | Dan 1 |
| Beyer, Bryan E. | Who Were the Medes? | Dan 5 |
| Booth, Steve | Who Were the "Sinners"? | Matt 9, 11, 25 |
| Capes, David B. | First Century Capernaum | Matt 4, 8, 12 |
| Drinkard, Joel F. | The King as God in the Ancient Near East and Israel | Dan 3 |
| Eddinger, Terry W. | Kings and Kingdoms in Daniel's Time | Book of Daniel |
| Gonzalez, Rudy | Almsgiving: Its Use and Abuse | Matt 6:1-18 |
| Gritz, Sharon H. | Judas Iscariot, the Betrayer | Matt 26-28 |
| Jackson, Paul N. | The Righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees | Matt 5:13-20 |
| Kelly, Bobby | Matthew and His Gospel | Matt 1-2 |
| Lane, Hal | Stranger: A Word Study | Matt 25:31-46 |
| McCoy, Glenn | Joseph the Carpenter | Matt 1, 2, 13 |
| Polhill, John | You Have Heard It Said: Jewish Laws Behind Jesus' Teachings | Matt 5:21-48 |
| Ray, Charles A. | John the Baptist: His Life and Ministry | Matt 3, 11, 14 |
| Roark, C. Mack | Forgiveness and the Jewish Tradition | Matt 18 |
| Stevens, Gerald L. | Divorce in the First Century | Matt 1, 5, 19 |
| VanHorn, Wayne | Belshazzar: All We Know | Dan 5:1-31 |
| Ward, Patrick D. | The "John the Baptist Cave" [ARTifacts] | |
| Weathers, Robert A. | The "Kingdom of Heaven" in Matthew | Matt 12, 13, 16, 19 |
| Wilder, Terry L. | What About the Gospel of Judas? | |
| [CenterSpread] | The Messiah's Ministry: An Account by Matthew |
The articles above are in both the print issue of BI and the BI Plus CD-ROM. However, the articles below are from previous issues and can be found only on the CD-ROM edition.
| Arnold, Stuart | Debtor's Slavery | Matt 18:21-35 |
| Bailey, John | Jesus as "Prophet" | Matt 21:4-14 |
| Boyd, Timothy N. | The Disciples in History and Tradition | Matt 9:36 - 10:1, 27-29 |
| Brooks, James A. | Lawyer and Scribe in the First Century | Luke 10:25; Matt 5:20; 23:1, 23, 27 |
| Caldwell, Daniel | Babylonian and Persian Kings | Dan 3:1-30 |
| Carter, Terry | A Talent | Matt 18:21-35; 25:14-30 |
| Champy III, Harry D. | Belshazzar: All We Know | Dan 5:1-7, 25-28 |
| Cheavens, Alice D. | The Roman Mile | Matt 5:41 |
| Cole, Dennis | First Century Bethlehem | Matt 2:1-12 |
| Cook, Donald E. | Jesus' Use of Parables | Isa 5:1-7 |
| Cook III, William F. | Lamps in Ancient Israel | Matt 5:13-20 |
| Davis, Conn | House Construction in Jesus' Time | Matt 7:24-29 |
| Dehoney, Wayne | The Place of Jesus' "Sermon" | |
| Draper, Charles W. | The Heavenly Host | Ps 148:2-5; 103:20-21 |
| Drinkard, Joel | The Spoils of War | Dan 1:3-5, 8-16 |
| Drinkard, Joel | Wealth, Trade, Money & Coinage in the Ancient World | Prov 16:16; 22:4; 28:20 |
| Dunn, Mark R. | The Blind in Jesus' Day | Matt 9:18-38; 15:16-20 |
| Fowler, R. D. | Zebedee the Fisherman | Matt 20:20-28; Rom 12:9-13 |
| Easley, Kendall H. | Commerce in First-Century Israel | Matt 13:24-52 |
| Easley, Kendall H. | Prayer Customs in First Century Judaism | Matt 6:5-15 |
| Evans, Bob | The Practice of Making Oaths | Matt 5:27-37 |
| Green, Joe | The Learning and Wisdom of Chaldea | Dan 1:17 |
| Gregg Sr., D. Larry | The House of Herod | Isa 9:6-7; Matt 1:18-23; 2:1-2, 9-11 |
| Gritz, Sharon | Kingdom of God in Intertestamental Judaism | Matt 13:1-23; 13:24-52; 16:13-28 |
| Gritz, Sharon | Pilate's Power and Authority | Matt 28 |
| Haag, H. Joseph | The Early Church's View of Poverty | John 12:5; James 2:15-16 |
| Hall, Kevin | Apocalyptic Literature | Books of Daniel and Revelation |
| Hankins, L. Milton | Beams & Motes | Matt 7:1-12 |
| Huckaby, Gary C. | Caesarea Philippi | Matt 16:13 |
| Jackson, Paul | Jesus' Last 40 Days | Matt 28:1-10 |
| Jones, Timothy Paul | The Meaning of "Raca" | Matt 5:21-26 |
| Knight, George W. | The Galilee Boat | Matt 14:22-33 |
| Knowles, Julie Nall | The Church's Use of the Model Prayer | Matt 6:9-15 |
| Lain, Gil | Ancient Storage Facilities | Matt 6:26 |
| Lain, Gil | Early Ships and Boats | Matt 14:29 |
| Lane, Hal | Worry: a Word Study | Matt 6:25-34 |
| Lanier, David E. | Salt in Ancient Israel | Matt 5:1-16 |
| Lemke, Steve W. | "Falling Away" or "Erring" from the Faith? | 1 Tim 4:1; 6:10 |
| McCoy, Glenn | God as Heavenly Father | Matt 5:45, 48 |
| McCoy, Glenn | The Mount of Transfiguration | Matt 17:1-13 |
| McGraw, Larry | God's Angelic Messengers in the New Testament | Psalm 103:20-21; Matt 13:39-42; Mark 13:26-27; Acts 12:7-9, 11; 27:23-24 |
| McWilliams, Warren | Predestination: Time and Space | Matt 6:8 |
| Miller, Stephen R. | Capital Punishment in the Ancient Near East | Dan 3; Esth 4:11 |
| Miller, Stephen R. | The Neo-Babylonian Empire | Book of Daniel |
| Moseley, Allan | Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego: All We Know | Dan 1:8, 14-17; 3:17-18, 26-28 |
| Parsons, Mikeal C. | The Holy Spirit: A History of Interpretation | Rom 5:5 |
| Patterson, Bill | Divorce in First Century Israel | Matt 19:4-6, 10-12; Rom 16:3-5a; 1 Cor 7:7-9, 32-35; Eph 5:21-22, 25 |
| Peacock, Kevin C. | The Battle of Carchemish | Books of Ezekiel and Daniel |
| Poulton, Gary | The Roman Military in Jesus' Day | Matt 8:1-13 |
| Pouncey, Greg | Who Were the Magi? | Matt 2:1-23 |
| Rathel, Mark | Salvation: A Word Study | Luke 2:25-38 |
| Reeves, Rodney | Mourning the Dead in the First Century | Matt 9:18-31; 36-38 |
| Register, Dean N. | Jesus as the Son of God | Matt 3:17; 4:3 |
| Roberts, Sharon | Pearls in the Ancient World | |
| Robertson, Paul E. | The Love of Money | 1 Tim 6:10 |
| Robinson, Dale G. | The Trumpet in the New Testament | Matt 24:3-6, 29-31, 42-47 |
| Sandlin, Bryce | A History of Darius I | Dan 6:1-28 |
| Simmons, Billy E. | Poverty and Wealth in the Early Church | Matt 6:1-18 |
| Tench, Tony | The Pure in Heart | Matt 5:3-12 |
| Trammell, Timothy | Introducing Matthew's Gospel | Matt 2:1-12 |
| Ward, Patrick D. | City Gates in Jesus' Day | Matt 7:13-29 |
| Ward, Patrick D. | Jesus' Early Life | |
| Warren, William | Our English Bible | |
| Wood, Darryl | Prayer: Its History and Use | 1 Thess 5:17 |
| Woodward, C. Alan | Annas and Caiaphas | Matt 26:1-56; John 18:15-27; 19:1-42 |
| Woodward, C. Alan | "Mammon" | Matt 6:19-24 |
Finally, I was honored to be quoted in an ad for Biblical Illustrator appearing in one of Lifeway's publications this quarter. Here is a reproduction of the ad below. Click on the image to see a larger version.
