Pursuing Veritas

Reflections by Jacob J. Prahlow
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  • What Does 1 Thessalonians Say about Masks?

    This post is a few months in coming because I’m woefully behind on my writing for all kinds of personal reasons (maybe more on that some other time). But we’re also preaching through 1 Thessalonians at Arise Church right now, so I was reminded about a post I’d started a while back. I write this…

  • Book Review: Spurgeon and the Psalms

    In trying times, there are few things more comforting than the Psalms. And in an era when contemplative faith is increasingly difficult, fewer pastors bring the depth of insight than Charles Spurgeon. I was delighted, therefore, to receive the new text of Spurgeon and the Psalms from Thomas Nelson. This slim volume includes each of…

  • How Can We Respond?

    “How should we respond when terrible things happen?” It’s a question that I’m asked all too frequently these days. Our world is filled with senseless violence, abuse, coverups, disagreement, and brokenness. And while none of these tragic things are new, the media and technology of our present moment enable us to see and experience these…

  • Hilary of Poitiers: Commentary on Psalm 53

    Translation of Hilary of Poitiers’s Commentary on Psalm 53 (LXX 52) In the end; according to Maeleth; understandings to David. The fool said in his heart: There is no God and the rest. The present psalm is almost harmonious with the thirtieth psalm, but it does have in this a little understanding, not a likeness…

  • Ammonius of Alexandria on the Psalms

    Ammonius of Alexandria Commentaries on the Old and New Testament which Remain Relatively little is known about Ammonius of Alexandria (5th-6th century CE) apart from his service as presbyter in the Alexandrian and church and his brief literary fragments. This being the case, he has often been confused with an earlier Ammonius from Alexandria, the…

  • Paul and Justin: Conclusions and Bibliography

    This post marks the end of our series on Paul and Pneuma, Justin and Judaism. In this series I have argued that the reception of Paul’s letters in Justin’s Dialogue with Trypho demonstrates a transformation of Pauline concepts. Although Paul and Justin shared certain foundations—such as the authority of the scriptures of Judaism and ancestry…

  • Paul and Justin on the Identity of Israel

    This post is part of an ongoing series on Paul and Pneuma, Justin and Judaism. As noted previously, in Paul’s day the conflagration centered on whether or not the Gentiles could be brought into the people of God.[1] For Paul, belonging to Christ did not negate the importance of proper genealogy; on the contrary, genealogical…

  • Paul and Justin on the Ancestry of Abraham

    This post is part of an ongoing series on Paul and Pneuma, Justin and Judaism. Paul refers to Abraham nineteen times in his undisputed letters, often citing God’s promise to Abraham, his faith, or status as intermediary.[1] Key for Paul’s theology was the genealogical function Abraham filled. Galatians 3:1-9 suggests that, for Paul, Abrahamic sonship…

  • Paul and Justin on Pneuma

    This post is part of an ongoing series on Paul and Pneuma, Justin and Judaism. Turning to Justin’s views on pneuma, it is instructive that the Dialogue opens with reflections on his philosophical journey to Christianity, wherein he remarks that he learned “nothing new about God” while studying under the tutelage of a Stoic (Dial.…

  • What I Read in 2021

    Every year, I commit to reading as much and as widely as possible and (as a means of remembering everything I’ve read and holding myself accountable to my reading goals) I track the books I’ve read each year. (Click here to see what I read in 2020) A couple of notes before my list. First,…