Dr Paul Allen

This article is from Bible Gateway. The author of the Gospel has traditionally been identified with “Matthew,” who according to this Gospel is one of Jesus ’ twelve disciples (see Matthew 9:9 ; he is called “Levi” in Luke 5:27 ). The main source of this tradition is Irenaeus (a second-century bishop) who writes: “Matthew also issued a written Gospel among the Hebrews in their own dialect” (Against Heresies 3.1.1). It is also possible that Papias (another second-century bishop) refers to this tradition: “Matthew put together the oracles [of the Lord] in the Hebrew language ” (quoted by Eusebius, in his Church History, 3.39.16). It is extremely unlikely, however, that this tradition is accurate. The main argument against it is that Matthew is widely agreed to be dependent for much of his information on Mark’s Gospel , and if Matthew were an eye-witness (as on the traditional view) it is unclear why this would be the case. The high level of verbal agreement between Matthew and Mark als...

When Jesus answered the disciples’ question about the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem and his return and the end of the age, he prophesied events and developments that the disciples understood. The events of signs 1 through 8 and sign 10 (see question 3) describe realities in the first century as well as the history of the church from the first century until today. Sign 9, the siege and destruction of Jerusalem , happened in A.D. 70. That the reference of Jesus’ prophecy in Matthew 24–25 (and Mark 13 / Luke 21 ) refers to the entire period between Jesus’ first coming in the first century and his second coming emerges from a consideration of (1) the structure of Jesus’ discourse on the end times, (2) Jesus’ warnings and exhortations, and (3) Jesus’ comments on the consequences of his prophecy for his followers. The Structure of Jesus’ Discourse on the End Times Jesus’ discourse on the end times follows his prediction of the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem and a...

English: Ezra Reads the Law to the People (Neh. 8:1-12) Русский: Священник Ездра читает народу Закон (Неем. 8:1-12) (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) “This Ezra went up from Babylon ; and he was a ready scribe in the law of Moses , which the LORD God of Israel had given: and the king granted him all his request, according to the hand of the LORD his God upon him.” ( Ezra 7:6 ) Neither Ezra, who was a scribe, nor Nehemiah , who was apparently a butler, had been prepared by either study or experience to supervise a great construction project, rebuilding the temple in Jerusalem and the wall of the city, both of which had been destroyed many years before by the armies of Babylon. Yet God called them to these ministries and led them and protected them as they carried them out. They were both careful, then, to give God the credit for what they had accomplished. No less than six times in Ezra and twice in Nehemiah they reminded their readers that God’s hand had been upon them as they supervi...

"Jeremiah Lamenting the Destruction of Jerusalem" by Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn. (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) Ever thought, how Jeremiah responded to Judah’s suffering at the time of the Babylonian exile ? Perhaps we can apply Jeremiah's responses to the goal of learning lessons on how the believer can respond to suffering righteously.  Jeremiah  weeps with those who weep , that he acknowledges  the role of sin in suffering , that he trusts in  God’s absolute sovereignty , and yet never finds fault with God but  recognizes the proper enemy . In the midst of his intense suffering and deep anguish, Jeremiah does not mourn as one who has no hope (1 Thess  4:13 ). Rather, he sets his hope entirely on, and rests in, the character of God. He hopes in the restoration of God’s people according to His character and His covenant. Structured Sorrow Probably the most intriguing fact about the Book of Lamentations is that the book with...

English: Ripe Meyer lemons, Citrus × meyeri. (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) Oftentimes problems with the fruit on a tree are not because of problems with the fruit on the tree. Below the soil’s surface, there is usually a sickness present. Things like fungus, poor nutrient content in the soil, insufficient watering, and pests can plague the roots and subsequently damage the tree. So goes the root, so goes the fruit. Neglect the root, neglect the fruit. Imagine an orchardist who addressed sickly trees by only addressing the fruit. He approaches the sickly lemon tree , puts up his ladder, and inspects the lemons. Some of the lemons are flaccid, some shrunken, and others cracked open and rotten. Then, imagine, that he breaks out a syringe with store-bought lemon juice and injects the emaciated lemons to fill them out a bit. To repair the sickly, split lemons, he breaks out some band-aids and closes up those holes. Finally, he notices some fruitless branches. So, he breaks out hi...

The Creation stained glass window at St. Matthew's Lutheran Church in Charleston, SC. Franz Mayer & Co. of Munich, Germany represented by the studios of George L. Payne of Patterson, New Jersey 1966. (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) “Even every one that is called by my name: for I have created him for my glory, I have formed him; yea, I have made him.” ( Isaiah 43:7 ) There are three main verbs used to describe God ’s work of creation in Genesis . These are “create” ( Hebrew , bara), “make” (asah), and “form” (yatsar). The three words are similar in meaning but each with a slightly different emphasis. None of them, of course, can mean anything at all like “evolve,” or “change,” on their own accord. All three are used in Genesis with reference to man. “And God said, Let us make man in our image. . . . So God created man in his own image. . . . And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground” ( Genesis 1:26-27 ; 2:7). Although the subject of creation is commonly associated...