UH-EH-BH Scripture Index

This is an index of Scriptures consulted for, or referenced in, the original hymns by R.D. Fish in Useful Hymns (1-201), Edifying Hymns (223-335) and Bountiful Hymns (366 ff.), including propers for the day for hymns based on the lectionary.

Genesis 1:1-2, 248; — 1:1-5, 108, 440; — 1:1-2:4, 114, 406; — 1:3, 107; — 1:3-10, 298; — 1:11-12, 188; — 1:26-27, 113, 195; — 1:31, 189, 311; — 2:1-3, 189; — 2:7, 107, 156, 172; — 2:18-20, 313; — 2:18-25, 135, 195, 307, 483; — 3:1-21, 40, 114, 392; — 3:7, 103, 113; — 3:8-15, 315, 466; — 3:14-4:1, 151; — 3:15, 99, 105, 249, 257, 285, 289, 308; — 3:19, 292; — 3:24, 181; — 4:1, 308; — 4:1-15, 266; — 4:25, 287, 308; — 6-8, 137; — 6:1-12, 268; — 8:11, 187; — 9:8-17, 473; — 11:1-9, 519; — 12:1-9, 393; — 12:10-20, 138; — 13:14-18, 138; — 15:1-6, 138; — 16:1-15, 138; — 17:1-8, 138; — 17:1-16, 450; — 17:15-21, 138; — 18:1-14, 529; — 18:9-15, 151; — 18:20-33, 138, 192, 530; — 19:27-29, 138; — 20:1-18, 138; — 21:1-14, 151; — 22:1-18, 138, 449; — 24:61-67, 307; — 25:8, 312; — 25:21-28, 285; — 29:31-35, 151, 285; — 30:1-24, 151, 285; — 32:22-32, 139, 181, 312; — 35:16-20, 285; — 38:1-30, 151, 285; — 39:1-23, 140; — 40:1-41:49, 140; — 41:53-45:15, 140; — 45:3-15, 503; — 50:15-21, 140, 423, 521.

Exodus 2:1-10, 285; — 3:1-15, 126; — 4:10-12, 141; — 4:24-26, 285; — 6:10-12, 141; — 6:28-30, 141; — 7-12, 141; — 7-14, 14; — 12-34, 53; — 12:1-30, 106; — 12:11, 21; — 12:23, 181; — 13:1-15, 495; — 13:21-22, 187; — 14:1-31, 141; — 14:10-15:1, 374; — 15:1-18, 374; — 15:20-21, 151; — 16:1-31, 315; — 16:1-36, 141; — 16:2-15, 474; — 17:1-7, 141, 394; — 17:8-13, 141; — 19:1-9, 376; — 19:2-8, 410; — 20:1-17, 241, 451; — 20:1-6, 88; — 20:7, 89; — 20:8-11, 90; — 20:12, 91; — 20:13, 92; — 20:14, 93; — 20:15, 94; — 20:16, 95; — 20:17, 96, 97, 270; — 24:8-18, 391; — 31:18, 141; — 32:1-35, 141; — 34:1-7, 141; — 34:10-12, 141; — 34:29-35, 141, 448.

Leviticus 19:1-18, 389, 429; — 19:9-18, 528; — 25:25-28, 180.

Numbers 6:24-26, 155; — 11:4-29, 482; — 11:24-30, 405; — 21:4-9, 452; — 23:19, 116, 231, 234.

Deuteronomy 4:1-9, 478; — 5:12-15, 465; — 6:1-9, 487; — 6:4, 141; — 7:6-9, 416; — 11:18-21, 174; — 11:18-28, 408; — 12:8-9, 196; — 18:15-20, 443; — 26:1-11, 506; — 29:4, 232; — 30:15-20, 388, 536; — 32:36-39, 511; — 32:39, 109, 233; — 32:43, 3; — 33:11, 297; — 34:1-8, 53; — 34:1-12, 504.

Joshua 2:1-24, 151; — 6:17, 151; — 6:22-25, 151; — 24:1-2, 14-18, 476; — 24:1-15, 142; — 24:16-28, 142.

Judges 4-5, 151; — 6:22-23, 181; — 13:21-23, 181.

Ruth 1:16-17, 151; — 1:20-21, 267; — 2:10, 267; — 3-4, 307; — 3:1-13, 266; — 3:13, 267; — 4:1-17, 151; — 4:17, 267.

1 Samuel 1:1-28, 285; — 2:6, 102, 109, 111, 233; — 2:8, 91; — 3:1-10, 441.

2 Samuel 7:1-16, 437; — 11:1-27, 143, 271; — 11:26-12:14, 524; — 12:1-14, 143; — 12:15-23, 143, 156, 287; — 22:5-7, 261.

1 Kings 3:4-15, 439, 496; — 8:22-43, 522; — 8:56, 109; — 9:4-5, 143; — 17:1-24, 144; — 17:8-16, 488; — 17:17-24, 287, 523; — 18:1-46, 144; — 19:1-8, 144, 475; — 19:9-21, 144, 526; — 21:1-16, 253; — 21:17-29, 131, 144.

2 Kings 2:1-12, 144, 448; — 2:19-22, 145; — 3:4-25, 145; — 4:1-7, 145; — 4:8-37, 145; — 4:38-41, 145; — 4:42-44, 145; — 5:1-14, 145, 445; — 6:15-17, 181; — 6:15-23, 145; — 6:24-7:20, 145; — 13:14-21, 145.

2 Chronicles 6:15, 234; — 6:18-42, 111.

Nehemiah 8:1-10, 499; — 9:13, 240.

Job 1:1-22, 268 ; — 1:6-2:10, 271; — 1:21, 238, 287 ; — 2:7, 219; — 3:20-26, 118; — 7:20, 244; — 19:25-27, 173, 184, 280, 322; — 38:1-11, 468; — 38:4-18, 418; — 38:17, 319.

Psalm 2:12, 319; — 2:1-2, 268; — 2:12, 131; — 3:8, 321; — 6:1-10, 268; — 6:3, 244; — 8:1, 302, 320; — 8:5, 243; — 9:13, 319; — 10:1, 244; — 14:1-3, 239; — 16:11, 198; — 17:8, 186; — 18:2, 162; — 18:36, 102; — 19:1, 28, 84; — 19:14, 302; — 22:6, 281; — 22:9-10, 136; — 23:2, 306; — 23:4, 301; — 25:4-5, 310, 334; — 25:6, 278; — 25:7, 102, 110; — 26:8, 260; — 27:7-8, 52; — 27:7-9, 262, 317; — 28:2, 312; — 28:9, 84; — 29:1-11, 109; — 30:4, 180; — 30:5, 262; — 31:1-3, 261, 301; — 31:5, 105; — 31:15, 111; — 31:23, 270; — 32:1, 319; — 33:1-6, 48; — 33:1-9, 262; — 33:3, 247; — 33:9, 231, 234; — 33:22, 84; — 34:11, 309; — 34:13, 335; — 36:9, 242; — 37:7-8, 270; — 40:6, 223; — 40:15, 302; — 40:17, 28; — 40:31, 191; — 41:4, 190; — 42:1, 190; — 43:1-2, 44; — 44:23-26, 261; — 45:1-2, 29; — 45:1-17, 260; — 47:5-6, 262; — 49:15, 321; — 50:2-5, 26; — 51:1-19, 271; — 51:2, 111; — 51:5, 235; — 51:7, 111, 242; — 51:15, 223; — 51:16, 302; — 51:17, 83, 198; — 51:18, 128, 317; — 53:1-3, 239; — 57:3, 321; — 60:2-5, 261; — 61:1, 163, 335; — 63:1, 2; — 66:1-3, 49, 51, 262; — 66:4, 84; — 68:1-3, 119; — 68:18, 321; — 70:2, 317; — 70:3, 302; — 74:10-19, 268; — 77:18, 260; — 80:1, 26; — 81:1, 335; — 81:1-8, 47; — 84:2, 234; — 85:1, 27; — 86:11, 233; — 88:1, 2; — 88:2, 163; — 90:1-2, 159, 186; — 90:12, 158; — 90:13, 179; — 91:11-12, 181, 317, 328; — 92:1-4, 180; — 95:1, 83; — 95:1-5, 29; — 95:1-11, 120; — 95:7, 258; — 97:7-8, 260; — 98:1-2, 50, 262, 322, 366; — 100:1-2, 260; — 101:5, 270; — 103:10, 55; — 105:41, 303; — 106:47, 30; — 107:6, 317; — 107:20, 522; — 107:20-21, 260; — 107:23-32, 186; — 108:4, 281; — 113:4, 249; — 111:9, 262; — 115:1, 229; — 115:17, 311; — 116:1-9, 121; — 116:15, 92; — 118:1-29, 122; — 118:10-14, 162, 245; — 118:14-17, 197, 262, 280; — 118:22, 127; — 118:24, 199; — 119, 230, 317, 318, 319, 320, 321, 322; — 119:16, 109; — 119:18, 223; — 119:66, 310; — 119:105, 242, 319; — 119:114, 132, 164; — 119:176, 306; — 121:4, 234, 328; — 121:8, 297; — 122, 73; — 132:15, 109; — 137:1-6, 3; — 139:7-12, 190, 244; — 143:6, 2; — 143:10, 296; — 144:2, 162; — 145:18, 28; — 145:21, 28, 30; — 146:8, 223; — 147:1-20, 180; — 147:3, 158, 234; — 150:3-5, 321.

Proverbs 3:5, 296; — 3:9, 133; — 8:1-31, 520; — 9:1-10, 476; — 9:8, 301; — 14:30, 270; — 17:22, 198; — 18:9, 270; — 18:22, 307; — 21:3, 180; — 23:21, 270; — 25:2-10, 535; — 30:5, 123, 304; — 31:10-31, 266.

Ecclesiastes 1:2, 531; — 1:12-14, 531; — 2:18-26, 531; — 3:20, 292; — 5:10-20, 485; — 7:29, 296.

Isaiah 1:16-17, 180; — 5:1-7, 188, 426; — 6:1, 260; — 6:1-4, 84, 293; — 6:1-8, 106, 146, 181, 463, 501; — 6:5-7, 104, 179, 321; — 7:10-17, 146, 367, 380; — 7:14, 55, 257; — 9:1-4, 385; — 9:2-7, 367; — 9:6, 6, 257, 320; — 9:6-7, 146; — 11:1, 6, 176; — 11:2, 20, 197; — 11:1-5, 19, 238; — 11:1-10, 146, 378; — 11:10, 176; — 13:9-13, 268; — 25:6-9, 319, 427, 455; — 25:8, 250, 262, 281; — 29:11-19, 477; — 29:15, 319; — 30:29-30, 26; — 32:1-4, 146; — 32:14-20, 376; — 34:4, 17; — 35:1-10, 379; — 35:3-7, 191; — 35:4-7, 479; — 35:5, 223; — 38:18, 311; — 40:1-2, 251, 258; — 40:1-11, 435; — 40:21-31, 444; — 42:1-9, 146, 383; — 42:3, 162; — 42:14-21, 395; — 43:1, 83; — 43:1-7, 497; — 43:16-21, 510; — 43:18-25, 446; — 43:25, 110; — 44:3, 200; — 44:6-8, 415; — 45:1-7, 428; — 45:8, 28; — 45:12, 293; — 45:15, 181; — 48:20, 51, 262; — 49:1-7, 146, 260, 370, 384; — 49:8-13, 3; — 49:8-16, 390, 407; — 49:16, 249; — 50:4-10, 370, 480; — 51:1-6, 420; — 51:4-6, 490; — 52:7-10, 367; — 52:13-53:12, 146; — 53:3, 194; — 53:3-10, 55; — 53:5, 99, 102, 133; — 53:7, 246; — 53:7-10, 271; — 54:10, 146; — 55:1-5, 417; — 55:1-13, 124; — 55:6-9, 158, 424; — 55:10-13, 294, 414; — 55:11, 108, 132, 232; — 56:1-8, 419; — 57:15-21, 376; — 58:3-9, 180, 387; — 59:9, 319; — 60:1-6, 368; — 61:1-3, 158, 190; — 61:1-11, 436; — 61:10, 20, 114, 117, 178, 242, 297, 317; — 61:10-62:3, 146, 438; — 62:1-5, 498; — 62:6, 317; — 62:10-12, 367; — 62:11, 26; — 62:11-63:7, 370; — 63:7-14, 381; — 63:16, 30; — 64:1-2, 158; — 64:1-9, 434; — 64:6, 103; — 64:8, 255; — 65:1-9, 525; — 65:17-25, 512; — 66:10-14, 527; — 66:12-16, 3; — 66:18-33, 146, 534.

Jeremiah 1:12, 107, 234; — 7:1-7, 504; — 11:5, 297; — 11:18-20, 481; — 15:15-21, 421; — 17:5-8, 502; — 17:9, 192; — 20:7-13, 411; — 23:1-6, 472; — 23:3, 192; — 23:5, 176; — 23:9-40, 301; — 23:29, 132, 188; — 26:8-15, 507; — 28:5-9, 412; — 29:11-14, 78; — 31:7-9, 128, 486; — 31:31-34, 240, 453; — 33:14-16, 176, 491.

Lamentations 3:22-33, 224, 279, 302, 469; — 3:25-26, 266; — 3:26, 332; — 3:41, 294, 302.

Ezekiel 2:1-5, 470; — 3:1-2, 550; — 12:26-28, 231; — 17:22-24, 467; — 18:1-32, 425; — 33:7-9, 422; — 33:7-20, 508; — 33:11, 132; — 34:11-24, 433, 537; — 34:14, 306; — 36:26, 166, 232; — 37:1-14, 396, 462.

Daniel 1:1-16, 147; — 2:1-49, 147; — 3:1-30, 147; — 3:8-28, 374; — 4:1-37, 147; — 5:1-31, 147; — 6:1-24, 147, 373; — 7:9-10, 490; — 7:9-22, 224, 312; — 12:1-3, 374, 489; — 12:3, 17; — 12:1-13, 147.

Hosea 1-3, 148; — 2:14-20, 447, 464; — 5:15-6:6, 409; — 6:6, 180; — 10:13, 296.

Joel 1:3, 87 ; — 2:12-14, 148; — 2:12-19, 13, 369; — 2:28-32, 148.

Amos 1:2, 148; — 3:7, 148; — 5:6-15, 484; — 5:18-24, 431; — 6:1-7, 539; — 7:4-6, 148; — 7:7-15, 471; — 9:9-15, 148; — 9:11, 186.

Obadiah 10-21, 148.

Jonah 1:1-17, 148; — 2:10, 148; — 3:1-10, 148, 192, 442.

Micah 2:6, 148; — 3:5-12, 148, 430; — 5:2-5, 148, 494; — 7:8-20, 125; — 7:18-20, 148; — 7:19, 103.

Nahum 1:15, 148; — 3:7, 148; — 3:18, 148.

Habakkuk 1:1-4, 148, 540; — 2:1-4, 148, 540; — 2:20, 148; — 3:13, 148.

Zephaniah 1:7-16, 432; — 1:14-16, 148, 551; — 2:1-3, 148; — 3:9-13, 148; — 3:14-20, 493.

Haggai 1:1-15, 148; — 2:1-9, 148.

Zechariah 9:9-12, 148, 413, 454; — 2:13, 148; — 3:1-5, 148; — 6:12-13, 148; — 13:7-9, 148.

Malachi 1:1-2:17, 148; — 3:1-3, 148; — 3:1-7, 492; — 3:13-18, 547; — 4:1-2, 250; — 4:1-6, 148, 546; — 4:5-6, 131.

Matthew 1:2-5, 151; — 1:18-25, 93, 367, 380; — 1:23, 257, 258; — 2:1-12, 4, 6, 9, 187, 256, 259, 260, 368; — 2:13-15, 256; — 2:13-23, 4, 30, 381; — 3:1-12, 269; — 3:10, 131; — 3:11-12, 53, 179; — 3:13-17, 10, 53, 239, 269, 383; — 3:16, 201; — 4:1-11, 40, 392; — 4:4, 324; — 4:8-11, 88; — 4:12-25, 385; — 4:18-20, 265; — 4:18-22, 131, 303; — 4:24, 193; — 5-7, 548; — 5:1-12, 22, 263, 386; — 5:2, 320; — 5:3, 123, 366; — 5:6, 87, 162, 168, 190; — 5:11-12, 284; — 5:13, 192; — 5:13-20, 226, 387; — 5:17, 117; — 5:20, 371; — 5:20-26, 61; — 5:21-37, 388; — 5:24-27, 233; — 5:38-48, 389; — 6:1-20, 369; — 6:8-13, 100, 163, 286; — 6:10, 193, 296, 303; — 6:11, 186; — 6:12-14, 111; — 6:16-21, 13; — 6:19-20, 311; — 6:22-23, 242; — 6:24, 270, 296; — 6:24-34, 70, 201, 390, 407; — 7:7-8, 306, 329; — 7:13-14, 172, 283, 306; — 7:15-23, 63; — 7:15-29, 408; — 7:24-27, 109, 112, 265, 306; — 8:1-13, 33, 260; — 8:10-12, 115; — 8:16-17, 252, 283; — 8:20, 96, 169, 186, 256; — 8:23-27, 34, 260; — 9:1-8, 74, 102, 107; — 9:9-13, 94, 150, 288, 303, 409; — 9:15, 93; — 9:18-25, 79; — 9:20-22, 314; — 9:22, 289; — 9:24, 280; — 9:33, 252; — 9:35-10:8, 410; — 9:36, 134, 303; — 9:36-38, 132; — 10:1-15, 134; — 10:2-4, 150; — 10:8, 174, 290; — 10:21-33, 411; — 10:28-31, 314; — 10:34-39, 298; — 10:34-42, 412; — 11:2-10, 27; — 11:4-6, 107, 227; — 11:12, 20, 21; — 11:17-15, 269; — 11:25-30, 413; — 11:30, 242, 321; — 12:1-8, 90; — 12:11, 313; — 12:22-30, 227, 260; — 12:38-42, 148; — 13:1-23, 105, 226, 232, 310, 414; — 13:10-17, 226; — 13:18-23, 107, 283; — 13:25, 2; — 13:31-33, 226; — 13:33, 108, 18, 324; — 13:34-35, 226; — 13:24-43, 35, 171, 226, 260 415; — 13:44-46, 226; — 13:44-52, 416; — 13:47-50, 226; — 13:52, 149, 265, 302, 366; — 13:54-58, 256; — 13:57, 320; — 14:1-12, 269; — 14:13-21, 417; — 14:22-33, 418; — 14:43-45, 226; — 15:14, 242; — 15:21-28, 41, 419; — 15:30, 289; — 15:32-39, 62; — 16:1-4, 148; — 16:13-20, 150, 420; — 16:16-20, 264; — 16:17, 237; — 16:18-19, 112, 549; — 16:19, 129, 258, 303, 322; — 16:21-28, 421; — 16:24, 174, 250, 303, 550; — 16:27, 98; — 17:1-2, 242; — 17:1-9, 36, 53, 260, 391; — 17:14-21, 227, 294; — 17:20, 162; — 18:1-20, 422; — 18:7, 127, 132; — 18:10, 100, 101, 111, 181; — 18:10-14, 131, 330; — 18:18, 303, 322, 549; — 18:20, 108, 179; — 18:21-35, 102, 196, 226, 423; — 18:23-35, 77; — 19:3-10, 195; — 19:4-6, 135, 307; — 19:13, 163; — 20:1-16, 37, 226, 311, 424; — 20:20-23, 198, 299; — 20:25-28, 296; — 21:1-9, 25; — 21:1-11, 45, 377; — 21:5, 258; — 21:18-22, 226; — 21:23-27, 425; — 21:33-46, 226, 426; — 21:42-46, 127; — 22:1-14, 75, 115, 167, 226, 322, 427; — 22:15-22, 78, 295, 428; — 22:34-46, 429; — 22:43, 6; — 23:1-12, 430; — 23:37, 91, 290, 299; — 24:4-5, 181; — 24:6, 186; — 24:15-27, 80; — 24:21-22, 3, 192; — 24:24, 99, 105; — 24:36, 131; — 24:36-44, 156; — 24:42-44, 322; — 24:45-51, 149; — 25:1-13, 82, 93, 167, 226, 322, 431; — 25:14-30, 226, 432; — 25:31-46, 81, 84, 226, 290, 433; — 25:40, 319, 322; — 26:1-16, 272; — 26:17-30, 272, 371; — 26:26-28, 129, 168, 180; — 26:31-35, 272; — 26:31-46, 288; — 26:26-29, 108, 237, 256, 314; — 26:36, 163; — 26:36-46, 5, 176; — 26:36-56, 272; — 26:41, 162; — 26:42, 108; — 26:57-68, 5, 272; — 26:69-75, 5, 89, 150, 272; — 27:1-2, 272; — 27:3-10, 272; — 27:11-26, 272; — 27:13-14, 107, 252; — 27:26-31, 249, 321; — 27:27-31, 272; — 27:29, 105, 176; — 27:32-56, 272, 321, 372; — 27:45-54, 20, 164; — 27:46-47, 276; — 27:50-53, 249; — 27:51-53, 251; — 27:57-66, 249, 272, 373; — 28:1-4, 181; — 28:1-20, 398; — 28:16-20, 406; — 28:18-20, 98, 107, 129, 239, 304, 316; — 28:19, 184; — 28:20, 252.

Mark 1:1-8, 435; — 1:4-11, 440; — 1:7, 127; — 1:9-15, 449; — 1:10-14, 4; — 1:14-20, 442; — 1:16-20, 131; — 1:21-28, 443; — 1:29-39, 444; — 1:40-45, 445; — 2:1-12, 107, 446; — 2:12, 252; — 2:18-22, 151, 447, 464; — 2:23-28, 90, 465; — 3:20-35, 466; — 3:27, 226; — 4:24, 289; — 4:26-29, 149; — 4:26-34, 467; — 4:35-41, 169, 227, 468; — 4:39, 190; — 5:21-43, 107, 227, 287, 469; — 5:34, 289; — 5:40-43, 108, 289; — 6:1-13, 470; — 6:3, 246, 285; — 6:14-29, 471; — 6:30-44, 472; — 6:45-56, 473; — 7:1-13, 477; — 7:7-8, 289; — 7:14-23, 478; — 7:31-37, 67, 102, 223, 271, 331, 479; — 7:34, 108; — 7:35, 223; — 8:1-10, 62; — 8:13-21, 227; — 8:27-38, 450; — 9:2-9, 448; — 9:14-29, 480; — 9:24, 160, 172, 190; — 9:25, 294; — 9:30-37, 481; — 9:38-41, 298; — 9:38-50, 482; — 10:2-16, 483; — 10:13-16, 129, 136, 239, 258, 309, 330; — 10:17-22, 250, 290, 484; — 10:23-31, 485; — 10:35-45, 150, 453; — 10:35-39, 299; — 10:46-52, 486; — 11:1-10, 434; — 12:28-27, 487; — 12:38-44, 488; — 12:41-44, 290; — 13:1-13, 489; — 13:13, 312; — 13:22, 99; — 13:24-37, 434, 490; — 13:32, 131; — 13:33, 3, 311; — 14:1-11, 273; — 14:12-21, 273; — 14:22-26, 273; — 14:27-31, 273; — 14:32-42, 273 ; — 14:36, 259; — 14:43-52, 273; — 14:53-65, 273; — 14:66-72, 273; — 15:1-15, 273; — 15:3, 234; — 15:7, 105; — 15:11-15, 127; — 15:16-20, 273; — 15:21-36, 273; — 15:37-39, 110, 113, 246; — 15:37-47, 273; — 16:1-8, 160, 455; — 16:5, 181; — 16:15, 129, 315, 320; — 16:16, 239, 252; — 16:19, 117, 180.

Luke 1:1-4, 149; — 1:5-25, 269; — 1:16-17, 131; — 1:26-28, 266; — 1:26-38, 15, 98, 107, 180, 285, 437; — 1:26-45, 7, 151, 308; — 1:38, 265; — 1:39-45, 136, 269, 285, 494; — 1:39-56, 19; — 1:46-55, 85; — 2:1-7, 4, 6, 9, 258; — 2:1-14, 367; — 2:7, 252, 256; — 2:8-20, 6, 258; — 2:13-14, 164, 277; — 2:15-20, 259, 367; — 2:21, 4, 8; — 2:22-40, 4, 12, 438, 495; — 2:25-35, 325; — 2:28-32, 86; — 2:29, 9, 87, 297; — 2:33-40, 29; — 2:34-35, 265, 285; — 2:36-38, 151; — 2:39-40, 246; — 2:40-52, 237, 260, 439, 496; — 2:41-52, 31; — 2:51-52, 246, 309; — 3:1-4, 492; — 3:9, 131; — 3:15-22, 497; — 3:16, 127, 179; — 4:1-13, 506; — 4:16-30, 499; — 4:28-30, 127; — 4:39, 294; — 4:40, 289; — 5:1-11, 60, 501; — 5:17-26, 107; — 6:1-5, 90; — 6:13, 265; — 6:17-26, 502; — 6:27-38, 503; — 6:27-42, 521; — 6:36-42, 59; — 6:38, 133; — 6:39, 242; — 6:39-49, 504; — 6:46-49, 112; — 7:1-10, 522; — 7:11-17, 71, 107, 108, 287. 523; — 7:13-14, 258; — 7:18-23, 289; — 7:18-28, 493; — 7:21, 242; — 7:22-23, 107, 314; — 7:36-50, 226, 524; — 7:50, 87; — 8:4-15, 38, 99; — 8:11, 108, 132, 181, 301; — 8:11-15, 107, 241; — 8:22-25, 169; — 8:26-33, 227; — 8:26-39, 525; — 8:40-56, 107; — 8:54-56, 108; — 9:18, 163; — 9:28, 163; — 9:28-36, 504; — 9:42, 294; — 9:51-56, 260, 261; — 9:51-62, 526; — 10:1-20, 527; — 10:23-24, 237; — 10:23-37, 68; — 10:25-37, 226, 528; — 10:34, 320; — 10:38-42, 151, 529; — 11:1-13, 530; — 11:14-28, 42; — 11:28, 107; — 11:47, 299; — 12:13-21, 226, 531; — 12:52-53, 283; — 13:1-9, 508; — 13:6-9, 188; — 13:20-21, 108; — 13:22-30, 534; — 13:31-35, 507; — 13:34, 299; — 14:1-11, 72; — 14:1-14, 535; — 14:5, 313; — 14:16-20, 57; — 14:25-33, 226; — 14:25-35, 536; — 15:1-10, 58, 169, 178, 226, 306, 537; — 15:4-7, 131; — 15:11-32, 226, 509; — 16:1-9, 64; — 16:1-13, 226; — 16:19-31, 56, 161, 539; — 17:1, 127; — 17:5, 162; — 17:10, 162, 302; — 17:11-19, 23; — 17:15-16, 314; — 17:24, 242; — 18:1-8, 226; — 18:3, 318; — 18:8, 179, 240; — 18:13, 103; — 18:9-14, 66; — 18:9-17, 543; — 19:1-10, 271, 332, 544; — 19:10, 306; — 19:28-40, 491; — 19:41-48, 65; — 20:9-20, 510; — 21:5-28, 546; — 21:12-19, 300; — 21:25-36, 26, 491; — 22:20, 104; — 22:31-32, 302, 316; — 22:39-46, 5, 274, 281; — 22:42, 108, 312; — 22:44, 245; — 22:47-48, 5, 127; — 22:47-53, 274; — 22:54-62, 274; — 22:63-71, 274; — 22:69, 180; — 23:1-12, 274; — 23:1-56, 511; — 23:9, 107; — 23:13-25, 274; — 23:23-25, 5; — 23:26-31, 274; — 23:46-47, 105, 110, 113; — 23:27-43, 547; — 23:32-38, 274; — 23:32-43, 127; — 23:33-34, 92, 163, 231, 276; — 23:39-43, 94, 196, 274, 276; — 23:44-56, 274; — 23:46, 276; — 23:50-56, 96; — 24:1-7, 262; — 24:1-12, 512; — 24:13-35, 262, 374, 400; — 24:36-49, 262, 374, 457; — 24:44, 149, 233; — 24:44-45, 232; — 24:44-53, 375.

John 1:1-2, 259; — 1:1-5, 54, 98, 107, 108, 114, 178, 232, 248, 252, 268; — 1:1-14, 84, 225, 233, 289, 309, 367; — 1:3, 116; — 1:4, 242; — 1:6-28, 436; — 1:9-14, 169, 268; — 1:14, ..107, 116, 180, 237, 243, 252, 257, 265, 302; — 1:18, 88, 321; — 1:19-28, 28; — 1:27, 127; — 1:29, 127, 131, 178, 231, 269; — 1:29-37, 10; — 1:29-42, 384; — 1:40-42, 150; — 1:43-51, 441; — 2:1-11, 32, 93, 198, 227, 260, 307, 498; — 2:13-22, 451; — 2:17, 283; — 3:1-8, 101, 179; — 3:1-17, 239, 393, 463; — 3:3-5, 108, 110, 252; — 3:8, 54, 277; — 3:13, 317; — 3:13-15, 372; — 3:13-17, 5, 235, 237; — 3:14-21, 452; — 3:16, 184, 231, 304; — 3:16-21, 376; — 3:19, 164; — 3:22-36, 269; — 3:35, 91; — 4:5-42, 394; — 4:19-26, 126; — 4:35, 322; — 4:46-54, 76, 227; — 5:1-9, 289, 517; — 5:17, 108; — 5:28-29, 98; — 5:37-40, 233; — 6:1-14, 43; — 6:22-35, 474; — 6:29, 83; — 6:30-32, 227; — 6:32-35, 168, 188; — 6:35, 109; — 6:35-51, 126, 475; — 6:44, 180; — 6:47-51, 168, 188, 256; — 6:51, 40, 87, 201, 324; — 6:51-69, 20, 476; — 6:52-58, 167, 188; — 6:54-58, 164; — 6:55, 102, 111, 179; — 6:63, 107, 252; — 7:37-39, 109, 405; — 8:1-12, 93; — 8:12, 242; — 8:12-18, 126; — 8:18, 310; — 8:23-24, 126; — 8:28, 108, 126; — 8:31-32, 233, 296, 332; — 8:34, 288; — 8:46-59, 44; — 8:48-59, 126, 127, 520; — 9:1-41, 395; — 9:4, 311; — 9:6-7, 102; — 10:1-5, 306; — 10:1-10, 376, 401; — 10:7-16, 126; — 10:10, 94, 288; — 10:11-13, 128, 306; — 10:11-16, 48; — 10:11-18, 188, 262, 458; — 10:22-30, 515; — 10:25-37, 92; — 10:27-28, 306; — 10:30, 233; — 10:31-39, 127; — 10:35, 108, 226, 232; — 11:1-53, 396; — 11:16, 150; — 11:20-27, 126; — 11:32-36, 156, 160, 190; — 11:38-44, 283, 287; — 11:43-44, 11, 107, 172, 289; — 12:1-23, 370; — 12:12-19, 397; — 12:18-20, 126; — 12:20-21, 233; — 12:23-24, 5; — 12:23-33, 16; — 12:23-50, 370; — 12:27-28, 89; — 12:28-30, 227; — 12:37-43, 454; — 12:46, 164; — 13:1-12, 17; — 13:1-17, 196, 371; — 13:10, 111, 258; — 13:12-14, 126; — 13:16-38, 370; — 13:23, 150; — 13:31-35, 516; — 14:1-14, 402; — 14:2, 128, 174; — 14:6, 126, 242; — 14:8-14, 150; — 14:8-21, 376; — 14:15-18, 55; — 14:15-21, 403; — 14:18, 20, 262; — 14:19, 132, 311; — 14:23-31, 150, 519; — 14:26, 115; — 15:1-8, 108, 126, 171, 175, 179, 188, 226, 255, 459; — 15:2, 171, 176, 188; — 15:3, 54; — 15:4-8, 164, 167, 176, 242; — 15:4-10, 327; — 15:5, 305; — 15:9-17, 460; — 15:10, 108; — 15:11, 198; — 15:16, 236; — 15:18-21, 250, 300; — 15:23-16:4, 52; — 15:26-27, 318, 462; — 16:4-15, 462; — 16:5-15, 50; — 16:7-11, 103, 166, 250; — 16:15, 233; — 16:16, 18, 319; — 16:16-23, 3, 49; — 16:21, 308; — 16:23-24, 163; — 16:23-30, 51; — 16:33, 305; — 17:1-5, 55; — 17:1-11, 404; — 17:1-19, 5; — 17:1-26, 130, 163; — 17:11, 237, 298; — 17:11-19, 461; — 17:17, 232; — 17:20-23, 196, 298; — 17:20-26, 518; — 18:1-8, 5, 126; — 18:1-11, 107; — 18:1-14, 275; — 18:12-14, 5; — 18:15-27, 275; — 18:28-40, 275; — 18:33-37, 5, 107, 490; — 18:36, 183; — 19:1-5, 105; — 19:1-16, 275; — 19:1-30, 164; — 19:17-27, 275; — 19:25-27, 276, 325; — 19:26, 150; — 19:28-30, 276; — 19:28-42, 275; — 19:30, 107, 189, 231, 311; — 19:31-37, 105, 249; — 19:34-35, 110, 150, 320; — 20:1-18, 275, 374; — 20:1-31, 399; — 20:11-18, 151; — 20:19-23, 179, 316; — 20:19-31, 47, 456; — 20:20-23, 108, 113, 549; — 20:24-29, 105, 150, 249, 262, 283, 333; — 20:27, 127; — 20:31, 149; — 21:7, 150; — 21:1-14, 374, 514; — 21:15-19, 150, 303, 514; — 21:20, 150; — 21:24, 150.

Acts 1:1-11, 375 ; — 1:9-11, 18; — 1:12-26, 150, 404, 461, 518; — 2:1-4, 110, 113, 189; — 2:1-21, 405, 462, 519; — 2:1-39, 53; — 2:22-36, 406, 463, 520; — 2:36-41, 400; — 2:36-47, 464; — 2:37-39, 239, 309; — 2:38, 318; — 2:42, 265; — 2:43-47, 401; — 3:11-21, 457; — 3:13-19, 374; — 4:32-35, 456; — 4:1-12, 458; — 5:12-32, 513; — 5:29-42, 399; — 5:41, 300; — 6-7, 402; — 7:6-7, 180; — 8:14-17, 376; — 8:26-40, 459; — 9:1-22, 11, 514; — 9:5, 279; — 9:15-16, 303; — 9:18, 108; — 10:7, 293; — 10:15, 234; — 10:34, 233; — 10:34-48, 374, 376, 460; — 11:18, 2, 250; — 12:1-2, 150; — 13:26-33, 374; — 16:9-15, 517; — 16:14, 151, 223, 231, 234, 315; — 16:15, 239; — 17:11, 84, 233; — 17:16-31, 403; — 17:22-31, 88; — 17:23, 301; — 17:28, 315; — 18:24-26, 151; — 20:17-35, 515; — 20:17-38, 182; — 21:30-36, 293; — 22:16, 252, 309, 318; — 27:21-25, 157; — 27:35, 201.

Romans 1:1-7, 380; — 1:3-4, 224; — 1:8-17, 407; — 1:14-17, 321; — 1:28-32, 270; — 3:9-20, 239; — 3:20-22, 235; — 3:21-31, 229; — 3:21-28, 184, 241, 408; — 3:26, 319; — 4:1-17, 393; — 4:5, 317; — 4:13-25, 409; — 4:17, 232, 315; — 4:23-25, 231; — 5:1-2, 178; — 5:1-8, 394; — 5:1-11, 450; — 5:5, 225; — 5:6-11, 9, 160, 231, 236, 239, 370; — 5:6-15, 410; — 5:12-14, 168; — 5:12-19, 101, 392; — 5:26-32, 281; — 6:1-3, 103; — 6:1-11, 239, 318, 383, 440, 497; — 6:1-18, 288; — 6:3-4, ..101, 155, 167, 180, 237, 252, 256; — 6:3-5, 308; — 6:3-11, 61, 173, 174; — 6:4, 170, 179; — 6:5-11, 165; — 6:8-11, 262; — 6:9, 104, 155, 186, 243; — 6:10, 249; — 6:11, 167; — 6:12-23, 411; — 6:15-23, 174, 268; — 6:22, 252; — 6:23, 83, 159; — 7:1-13, 412; — 7:1-25, 185; — 7:7-11, 109; — 7:7-25, 240, 282; — 7:14-20, 168; — 7:14-25, 413; — 7:24-25, 110, 167; — 8:1-11, 396; — 8:2, 184, 288; — 8:12-17, 63, 376, 414; — 8:13, 11, 164; — 8:16-17, 116; — 8:18-23, 59; — 8:18-27, 114, 415; — 8:22-23, 186; — 8:26, 245, 255; — 8:26-27, 163; — 8:28, 245; — 8:28-39, 416; — 8:31, 186; — 8:34, 95; — 8:37, 162; — 9:1-5, 417; — 10:5-17, 418; — 10:8-13, 506; — 10:14-15, 107; — 10:14-17, 11; — 10:18, 132, 335; — 11:1-32, 419; — 11:8, 232; — 11:11-24, 175, 317; — 11:16-24, 18, 176; — 11:33-12:3, 268; — 11:33-12:8, 420; — 12:1-5, 31; — 12:2, 232, 303, 310, 326; — 12:3, 2, 162; — 12:5, 256; — 12:6-16, 32; — 12:9-21, 421; — 12:15, 280; — 12:16-21, 33; — 12:17-19, 87; — 13:1-5, 240; — 13:1-7, 291, 295; — 13:1-10, 422; — 13:8-10, 34; — 13:11-14, 25, 327, 377; — 13:12, 322, 283; — 13:13-14, 155, 270, 297, 318, 319; — 14:1-12, 423; — 14:19, 84; — 14:23, 223; — 15:4-13, 26; — 15:5-7, 130, 298; — 16:20, 265; — 16:25-27, 437.

1 Corinthians 1:1-9, 384; — 1:3-9, 434; — 1:10, 298; — 1:10-18, 385; — 1:16, 239; — 1:17-25, 165; — 1:18, 224; — 1:18-31, 123. 229, 232, 234, 283, 370, 451; — 1:26-31, 231, 238; — 2:1-12, 387; — 2:2, 165; — 2:4-5, 111, 301; — 3:1-9, 298, 388; — 3:6, 176; — 3:10-23, 389; — 3:18-20, 283; — 4:1, 181, 303; — 4:1-5, 27; — 4:1-13, 390; — 4:12-13, 300, 552; — 5:6-8, 270, 374; — 5:9-13, 130; — 6:12-20, 441; — 6:20, 322; — 7:1-9, 307; — 7:29-31, 442; — 8:1-13, 443; — 9:16-27, 444; — 9:24-25, 161, 187, 250, 330, 552; — 9:24-10:5, 37; — 9:26-27, 251. 552; — 10:1-13, 508; — 10:6-13, 64; — 10:13, 312; — 10:16-17, 105, 111, 157, 256; — 10:16-22, 99; — 10:31-11:1, 445; — 11:2, 302; — 11:7-12, 266; — 11:17-34, 229; — 11:18-19, 298; — 11:23, 109, 111; — 11:23-26, ..11, 20, 99, 106, 116, 184, 252, 258, 289, 316, 374; — 11:25, 104; — 11:26, 187; — 11:27-32, 106, 130; — 12:1-4, 498; — 12:1-11, 65; — 12:12-31, 499; — 12:13, 180, 239, 324; — 12:31-13:13, 500; — 13:1, 302; — 13:1-13, 39; — 13:12, 183; — 13:13, 309; — 14:12-20, 501; — 15:1-10, 66; — 15:1-11, 374, 455; — 15:3, 111; — 15:3-8, 302; — 15:5-58, 46; — 15:8-11, 11; — 15:9-10, 305; — 15:12-19, 252; — 15:12-20, 502; — 15:19-26, 512; — 15:20, 159, 246; — 15:20-28, 262, 433; — 15:21-26, 503; — 15:22, 40; — 15:26, 186; — 15:30-42, 503; — 15:33, 318; — 15:35-49, 157; — 15:42-52, 504; — 15:47-49, 181, 262; — 15:51-57, 158, 173, 244, 311; — 15:52, 3; — 15:53-55, 157; — 15:55, 90.

2 Corinthians 1:15-22, 38; — 1:18-22, 446; — 1:20, 108, 233; — 2:12-3:6, 447; — 2:14-16, 171; — 3:2-3, 240; — 3:4-11, 67; — 3:12-13, 448; — 3:12-18, 232; — 3:18, 224, 270, 318, 326; — 4:1-6, 448; — 4:4, 242; — 4:5-12, 465; — 4:7-14, 300; — 4:6, 158, 164, 234, 308; — 4:7, 234; — 4:13-5:1, 466; — 4:16, 241; — 4:16-18, 186; — 4:17, 242, 245, 318; — 4:23-25, 235; — 5:1, 142; — 5:1-10, 130, 467; — 5:17, 101, 114, 242, 281; — 5:20-6:10, 369; — 5:20, 316; — 5:21, 6, 127, 225; — 6:1-13, 468; — 6:2, 3; — 6:9-10, 161; — 6:14-18, 130; — 8:1-9, 469; — 8:9, 133, 290; — 8:24, 293; — 9:10, 188; — 10:3-5, 2, 11, 55, 232; — 12:4, 237; — 12:1-10, 229, 470; — 12:7-10, 83; — 12:9, 165, 171, 245, 284, 301, 312; — 13:11, 130, 298.

Galatians 1:6-8, 317; — 2:16, 2, 83, 119, 238; — 2:20, ..104, 109, 165, 167, 180, 184, 242, 315; — 2:21, 184, 322; — 3:1, 237; — 3:1-29, 229; — 3:5-6, 235; — 3:10-14, 119; — 3:12-17, 35; — 3:13-14, 6, 169, 176, 180, 289; — 3:15-22, 68; — 3:23-29, 8; — 3:23-4:7, 525; — 3:27, 239, 297, 308, 318, 319; — 4:1-7, 29; — 4:4-5, 169, 266; — 4:4-7, 381, 438; — 4:21-31, 285; — 5:1, 173; — 5:13-25, 526; — 5:19-21, 296; — 5:22-23, 69, 87; — 5:25-26, 253; — 6:1-18, 527; — 6:2, 250; — 6:14, 103, 131, 165, 169, 171, 249, 284.

Ephesians 1:3-14, 382, 439, 471, 496; — 1:7, 180; — 1:13, 235; — 1:15-23, 289, 296, 375; — 1:17:21, 243; — 1:22-23, 196; — 2:1-3, 91, 250; — 2:1-10, 109, 236, 452; — 2:1-18, 229; — 2:4-6, 101; — 2:4-10, 112; — 2:8-10, 119, 170, 235; — 2:11-22, 472; — 3:1-5, 113; — 3:1-12, 368; — 3:1-20, 229; — 3:8, 240; — 3:13-21, 71; — 3:14-21, 473; — 4:1-6, 72; — 4:1-16, 474; — 4:4-6, 233, 239; — 4:6, 279; — 4:8, 157; — 4:10, 104, 180, 225, 302; — 4:11-12, 303; — 4:17-5:2, 475; — 4:20-24, 303; — 4:22-28, 74; — 4:23-24, 101; — 5:1-2, 297; — 5:1-9, 42; — 5:2, 242, 320, 334; — 5:6-21, 476; — 5:8-10, 288; — 5:8-14, 395; — 5:15-16, 111, 302, 322; — 5:15-21, 75; — 5:22-33, 135, 195, 307, 477; — 5:25-27, 93, 101, 115, 136, 151, 165, 239, 266, 296; — 5:26, 110; — 6:7, 172; — 6:10-17, 24, 76, 177, 197, 233, 552; — 6:10-20, 229. 318, 478; — 6:11, 168, 317; — 6:13-17, 109; — 6:18, 312; — 6:19-20, 306; — 6:14, 265; — 6:16, 40, 162.

Philippians 1:2-11, 492; — 1:3-11, 77; — 1:12-30, 424; — 1:19-26, 280; — 1:21, 158, 161; — 1:27-30, 130; — 2:1-4, 298; — 2:1-18, 130, 425; — 2:5-11, 6, 18, 104, 111, 158, 169, 178, 225, 259, 454, 511; — 2:8, 165, 243; — 2:13, 114; — 2:16, 107, 157; — 3:4-14, 426; — 3:8, 131, 158, 244; — 3:14, 279, 320; — 3:7-8, 303; — 3:8-14, 510; — 3:12-16, 229, 280; — 3:17-21, 78; — 3:17-4:1, 507; — 3:20-21, 326; — 4:4-6, 27; — 4:4-7, 28, 493; — 4:4-13, 229, 253, 427; — 4:7, 55, 236, 283; — 4:8, 163, 247; — 4:11-13, 306; — 4:14-19, 253; — 4:19, 317.

Colossians 1:1-14, 528; — 1:9-14, 79; — 1:11-13, 197; — 1:13-20, 547; — 1:14, 180; — 1:18, 99, 105, 196, 318; — 1:19-20, 320; — 1:21-22, 320; — 1:21-29, 529; — 2:4-23, 229; — 2:6-15, 530; — 2:11-15, 109, 239, 256; — 2:13-14, 116, 155; — 2:16-17, 323; — 2:18, 181; — 2:20, 165; — 3:1, 180; — 3:1-7, 374; — 3:1-11, 531; — 3:1-25, 229; — 3:3, 318; — 3:12-17, 495; — 3:15, 132; — 3:16, 1, 303; — 3:27, 155; — 4:4, 111.

1 Thessalonians 1:1-10, 428; — 1:3-10, 81; — 2:1-13, 429; — 3:9-13, 491; — 4:1-12, 430; — 4:13-18, 80, 156, 159, 161, 229, 280, 431; — 4:14, 262; — 5:1-11, 82, 432; — 5:11, 87; — 5:16-24, 436; — 5:17, 550, 552.

2 Thessalonians 2:1-8, 545; — 2:1-12, 240; — 2:5-12, 291; — 3:6-13, 546.

1 Timothy 1:5, 285; — 1:7, 319; — 1:8-11, 240, 250; — 1:12-17, 11, 229, 537; — 1:12-20, 271; — 1:18-19, 24; — 2:1-2, 292, 312; — 2:1-15, 538; — 2:3-4, 11, 173, 231, 304; — 2:5, 54; — 2:5-6, 553; — 2:9-15, 266; — 3:1-7, 301; — 3:16, 6, 229, 260, 320; — 4:2, 167; — 4:6, 320, 552; — 4:6-8, 152; — 4:12-16, 152; — 4:13, 302; — 4:14, 303; — 6:6-10, 253, 296; — 6:6-19, 539; — 6:12, 24; — 6:12-16, 300; — 6:13-16, 319; — 6:17-19, 253.

2 Timothy 1:3-5, 151, 152; — 1:6, 303; — 1:10, 242; — 1:13-14, 152; — 2:1-13, 134, 541; — 2:3, 24; — 2:8-9, 108, 133; — 2:15, 233, 303; — 2:24-26, 2, 134, 250; — 3:14-17, 151, 152, 226, 229, 232; — 3:14-4:5, 542; — 4:1-5, 301; — 4:1-8, 152, 229; — 4:2, 232, 283; — 4:6-8, 24, 197, 300; — 4:8, 250, 325.

Titus 1:2-3, 108, 116, 232, 234, 252; — 1:5-9, 134; — 1:7-9, 250, 303; — 1:9, 296; — 2:1-8, 250, 296, 303; — 2:11-14, 367; — 3:1-2, 295; — 3:4-7, 101, 110, 229, 239, 321, 367.

Philemon 1-21, 153, 229, 536.

Hebrews 1:1-2, 233; — 1:1-6, 229, 367; — 2:1-13, 483; — 2:5-9, 243; — 2:14, 157, 257; — 2:17, 315; — 3:1-6, 504; — 3:7-15, 258; — 3:12-19, 484; — 4:1-4, 161; — 4:1-13, 485; — 4:9-10, 159, 160, 184, 245; — 4:12, 107, 232, 234; — 4:14-16, 245, 318, 320; — 4:15, 166, 190, 194, 243; — 5:1-10, 453; — 7:23-28, 231, 486; — 7:25, 178; — 7:27, 249; — 8:1-2, 289; — 9:11-15, 44, 184, 231, 370, 487; — 9:11-22, 116, 117, 252; — 9:12, 249, 302; — 9:13-14, 178, 241; — 9:24-28, 117, 488; — 10:5-10, 494; — 10:11-25, 489; — 10:12-13, 117, 180, 262; — 10:19-25, 197, 231, 301; — 11:1-16, 532; — 11:17-12:3, 533; — 11:31, 285; — 12:1-2, .20, 117, 145, 161, 164, 180, 187, 197, 278, 299, 302, 310, 321, 332; — 12:4, 251; — 12:4-24, 534; — 12:5-7, 255, 315; — 12:5-11, 171; — 12:12-13, 294; — 12:22-24, 95, 178, 232; — 13:1-7, 535; — 13:2, 290; — 13:5-6, 253; — 13:8, 277; — 13:10-13, 225; — 13:17, 134, 291, 306.

James 1:12, 250; — 1:12-18, 449; — 1:15, 96; — 1:16-18, 240; — 1:16-21, 50; — 1:17, 277, 309; — 1:21, 87, 107, 111, 172, 181, 239, 319; — 1:22-27, 51; — 2:1-18, 479; — 3:1-12, 480; — 3:4-10, 95; — 3:13-4:10, 481; — 4:2-3, 163; — 4:8, 333; — 5:7-11, 379; — 5:13, 303; — 5:13-20, 482.

1 Peter 1:3, 110; — 1:3-9, 399; — 1:6-9, 21; — 1:10-12, 235; — 1:17-25, 400; — 1:19-21, 237; — 1:23, 107, 132, 181; — 2:1-2, 262; — 2:2, 47, 136, 188, 324; — 2:2-10, 402; — 2:4-6, 186, 255; — 2:6-8, 127; — 2:9-10, 133, 200; — 2:11-20, 49; — 2:19-25, 401; — 2:21-25, 48; — 2:24, 99, 116, 133; — 3:8, 298; — 3:8-15, 60; — 3:13-22, 403; — 3:18-19, 98, 168, 278; — 3:18-22, 83, 101, 137, 227, 239; — 3:20, 315; — 3:21, 2, 170, 252; — 3:22, 18; — 4:1-8, 373; — 4:7-11, 52; — 4:12-13, 21; — 4:12-19, 30, 404; — 5:1-4, 250; — 5:6-7, 163, 172; — 5:8-9, 318.

2 Peter 1:16-21, 36, 250, 391; — 1:20-21, 113, 233; — 2:1-22, 196; — 3:7, 107; — 3:3-14, 81; — 3:8-14, 435; — 3:10-13, 250.

1 John 1:1-2, 107, 157; — 1:1-2:2, 456; — 1:7, 159, 311; — 1:9, 172; — 2:1-2, 178, 225, 243, 258; — 2:3-11, 327; — 2:14, 233; — 2:18-23, 291; — 3:1-7, 457; — 3:13-24, 57; — 3:16-24, 458; — 4:1-6, 291; — 4:1-11, 136, 459; — 4:7-16, 367; — 4:7-21, 83, 254; — 4:8, 163; — 4:12-16, 327; — 4:16-21, 56; — 5:1-8, 460; — 5:4-10, 47; — 5:6-8, 110, 170, 249; — 5:9-15, 461.

2 John 9, 327.

Jude 17, 265; — 19, 296; — 20-25, 490.

Revelation 1:4-8, 490; — 1:4-18, 154, 513; — 1:5, 89, 99, 105, 200, 319; — 1:7, 327; — 1:8, 322; — 1:8-18, 126; — 2:1-29, 154; — 2:4, 312; — 2:10, 162, 172, 245, 250; — 2:11, 156; — 3:1-22, 154; — 4:6-8, 181; — 5:6-14, 115; — 5:8-14, 154, 228, 514; — 5:9, 104; — 5:12, 228, 265, 291, 319; — 6:9-11, 3, 84, 161, 179; — 7:9-17, 3, 515; — 7:14, 83, 106, 119, 200, 265; — 7:14-17, 161; — 8:8-9, 3; — 12:7-12, 268; — 18:20, 84; — 19:1, 260; — 20:12-13, 98; — 21:1-7, 161, 516; — 21:4, 262; — 21:6, 322; — 21:9-14, 517; — 22:1-5, 10; — 22:1-20, 518; — 22:12-13, 322; — 22:12-20, 126; — 22:16, 6; — 22:18-19, 233; — 22:20, 18, 161, 179, 252, 311;

A Little Concordance to Psalm 119

Here's a little "word study" I did in preparation for a hymn that I'm still afraid to write, boiling down Psalm 119 into a vastly shorter poem that somebody might someday sing somewhere.

Big-time theologians these days scoff at biblical word studies, but this is a different kind of word study. I've gone through Psalm 119 and sorted out the different synonyms for the Word of God which that super-long acrostic poem uses in almost every verse, and then under each term I listed the verses (or half-verse, in some cases) it occurs in and the statement or request the psalmist makes regarding that word.

Before we get started, let's say the letter L stands for "the LORD" (sometimes added for context, usually actually named in the verse), and the long dash, —, is a convenient place-holder for His (or, often, "Your," addressing the LORD) whatever—see the subhead immediately prior. The translation of the verses is based on the New King James Version, but I took some liberties and, hand to heaven, I was also looking at the Hebrew text to make sure I got it straight. The words in parentheses in each subhead are my notion of how to transliterate the Hebrew root word relevant to each long entry; there's no need to pick on me for how I chose to do this. The numbers represent verses in the Psalm, and if they have an "a" or "b" after them, those designate half-verses. The cast is listed in order of appearance. So, here goes:

LAW (TORAH)
1. The blessed walk undefiled in —.
18. Open my eyes to see wondrous things from —.
29. Remove me from the way of lying; graciously grant me —.
34. Give me understanding and I shall keep — / observe it with my whole heart.
44. I shall keep — continually, forever and ever.
51. The proud deride me, but I do not swerve from —.
55b. I keep —.
61. The cords of the wicked bound me, but I did not forget —.
70. The heart (of the proud) is as fat as grease, but I will delight in —.
72. L, — of Your mouth is better to me than thousands of gold and silver.
77. L, let Your tender mercies come to me, and I will live; for — is my delight.
85. The proud have dug pits for me, which is not according to —.
92. Unless — had been my delight, I would have perished in my affliction.
97. I love —; it is my meditation all the day.
109. My life is continually in my hand, but I do not forget —.
113. I hate the double-minded, but I love —.
126. Time to act, L, for they have regarded — as void.
136. Rivers of water run from my eyes because they do not keep —.
142. Your righteousness is an everlasting righteousness, and — is truth.
150. They draw near who follow wickedness; they are far from —.
153. Consider my affliction and deliver me, for I do not forget —.
163. I hate and abhor lying; I love —.
165. Those who love — have great peace, and nothing causes them to stumble.
174. I long for Your salvation, L, and — is my delight.

TESTIMONIES (EDUTH)
2. The blessed keep — / wholeheartedly seek L.
14. I rejoice in the way of — as in all riches.
22. Remove my reproach, contempt, for I have kept —.
24. — are my delight and my counselors.
31. I cling to —; L, do not put me to shame!
36. Incline my heart to —, and not to covetousness.
46. I will speak of — before kings and will not be ashamed.
53. Indignation seized me because the wicked forsake —.
59. I thought about my ways, and turned my feet to —.
79. Let those who fear L turn to me, those who know —.
88. Revive me according to Your lovingkindness, and I will keep the — of Your mouth.
95. The wicked wait for me to destroy me; I will consider —.
99. I have more understanding than all my teachers, for — are my meditation.
111. I have taken — as a heritage forever, for they are the rejoicing of my heart.
119. L, You put away all the wicked of the earth like dross; therefore I love —.
125. I am Your servant; give me understanding that I may know —.
129. — are wonderful; therefore my soul keeps them.
138. —, which You commanded, are righteous and very faithful.
144. The righteousness of — is everlasting; give me understanding, and I shall live.
146. I cry out to You; save me, and I will keep —.
152. Concerning —, I have known of old that You founded them forever.
157. Many are my persecutors and enemies; I do not turn from —.
167. My soul keeps —, and I love them exceedingly.
168. I keep Your precepts (PIQUD) and —, for all my ways are before You.

WAY(S) (DEREK)
3. The blessed do no iniquity / walk in —.
37. Turn my eyes from looking at worthless things; revive me in —.

PRECEPTS (PIQUD)
4. L commands us to keep — diligently.
15a. I meditate on —.
27a. Make me understand the way of —.
40. I long for —; L, revive me in Your righteousness.
45. I will walk at liberty, for I seek —.
56. This has become mine: that I kept —.
63. I am a companion of all who fear L and keep —.
69. The proud forged a lie against me, but I will keep — with my whole heart.
78. Let the proud be ashamed, for they wronged me with falsehood; I will meditate on —.
87. They almost made an end of me on earth, but I did not forsake —.
93. I will never forget —, L, for by them You have given me life.
94. I am Yours, save me; for I have sought —.
100. I understand more than the ancients, because I keep —.
104. Through — I get understanding; therefore I hate every false way.
110. The wicked laid a snare for me, but I did not stray from —.
128. I regard all — concerning all things as right; I hate every false way (ORACH).
134. Redeem me from the oppression of man, that I may keep —.
141. I am small and despised; I do not forget —.
159. Consider how I love —; revive me, L, according to Your lovingkindness.
168. I keep — and Your testimonies (EDUTH), for all my ways are before You.
173. Let Your hand become my help, for I have chosen —.

STATUTES (CHUQ)
5. Oh, that my ways were directed to keep —!
8. I will keep —; L, do not forsake me utterly!
12. Blessed L., teach me —.
16a. I will delight in —.
23. Princes sit and speak against me, but L's servant meditates on —.
26. I have declared my ways and L answered me; teach me —.
33. Teach me the way of —, and I shall keep it to the end.
48b. I will meditate on —.
54. — have been my songs in the house of my pilgrimage.
64. L, earth is full of Your mercy; teach me —.
68. You are good and do good; teach me —.
71. It was good for me to be afflicted, that I may learn —.
80. Let my heart be blameless regarding —, that I may not be ashamed.
83. I have become like a wineskin in smoke; I do not forget —.
112. I have inclined my heart to perform — forever, to the very end.
117. Uphold me and I will be safe; I will observe Your — continually.
118. You reject all who stray from —, for their deceit is falsehood.
124. Deal with Your servant according to Your lovingkindness, and teach me —.
135. Make Your face shine on Your servant, and teach me —.
145. I cry out with my whole heart; hear me, L! I will keep —.
155. Salvation is far from the wicked, for they do not seek —.
171. My lips shall utter praise, for You teach me —.

COMMANDMENTS (MIZWAH)
6. Then (cf. 5) I will not be ashamed to look into all —.
10. I sought L; let me not wander from —.
19. Do not hide — from me, a stranger in the earth.
21. L rebukes the proud, cursed who stray from —.
32. I will run the course of —; for L shall enlarge my heart.
35. Make me walk in the path of —, for I delight in it.
47. I will delight myself in —, which I love.
48a. I will lift up my hands to —.
60. I hastened, and did not delay, to keep —.
66. Teach me good judgment, for I believe —.
73. Your hands made and formed me; give me understanding that I may learn —.
86. All — are faithful. (The proud) persecute me wrongly; help me!
96. I have seen the consummation of all perfection; — is very broad.
98. Lord, through —, You make me wiser than my enemies; for they are ever with me.
115. Depart from me, evildoers, for I will keep — of my God!
127. I love — more than gold, even than fine gold.
131. I open-mouth panted; I longed for —.
143. Trouble and anguish have overtaken me, but — are my delights.
151. You are near, L, and all — are truth.
166. L, I hope for Your salvation and I do —.
172b. All — are righteousness.
176. I have gone astray like a lost sheep; seek Your servant, for I do not forget —.

JUDGMENTS/ORDINANCES (MISHPAT)
7. I will praise L. with upright heart when I learn —.
13. My lips have declared all — of L's mouth.
20. My soul breaks with longing for — at all times.
30. I have chosen the way of truth; I have laid — before me.
39. Turn away my dreaded reproach, for — are good.
43b. I have hoped in —.
52. I remembered — of old, L, and comforted myself.
62. At midnight I will rise to thank You because of Your righteous —.
75. I know, L, that — are right, and in that faithfulness You afflicted me.
84. How many are Your servant's days? When will you do — on those who persecute me?
91. They continue this day according to —, for all are Your servants.
102. I have not departed from —, for You Yourself have taught me.
106. I have sworn and confirmed that I will keep Your righteous —.
108. Do accept the freewill offerings of my mouth, L, and teach me —.
120. My flesh trembles for fear of You, and I am afraid of —.
121. I have done —* and righteousness; do not leave me to my oppressors.
137. Righteous are You, L, and upright are —.
149. Hear my voice according to Your lovingkindness; revive me according to —.
156. Great are Your mercies, L; revive me according to —.
160b. Every one of Your righteous — is forever.
164. Seven times a day I praise you because of Your righteous —.
175. Let my soul live and it shall praise You; and let — help me.

WORD (DAVAR)
9. A young man can cleanse his way by heeding —.
16b. I will not forget —.
17. Deal bountifully with me that I may live and keep —.
25. My soul clings to the dust; revive me according to —.
28. My soul melts from heaviness; strengthen me according to —.
42. I shall have an answer for him who reproaches me, for I trust in —.
43a. Take not — of truth utterly from my mouth.
49. L, remember — to Your servant, on which You have made me hope.
57. L is my portion; I said I would keep —.
65. L, You have dealt well with Your servant, according to —.
74. Those who fear you, L, will be glad when they see me, because I hoped in —.
81. L, my soul faints for Your salvation, but I hope in —.
89. Forever, L, — is settled in heaven.
101. I have restrained my feet from every evil way, that I may keep —.
105. — is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.
107. I am very afflicted; revive me, L, according to —.
114. L, You are my hiding place and my shield; I hope in —.
130. The entrance of — gives light; it gives understanding to the simple.
139. My zeal has consumed me, because my enemies have forgotten —.
148. I rise before the morning dawn and cry for help; I hope in —.
160a. The entirety of — is truth.
161. Princes persecute me without cause, but my heart stands in awe of —.
169. Let my cry come before You, L; give me understanding according to —.

UTTERANCES/WORD (IMRAH)
11. I have hidden — in my heart, that I might not sin against L.
38. Establish — to L's servant, who fears L.
41. Let Your mercies come to me, L; your salvation according to —.
50. My comfort in affliction: — has given me life.
58. I begged L's favor with my whole heart; be merciful to me according to —.
67. Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I keep —.
76. L, let Your lovingkindness be for my comfort, according to — to Your servant.
82. My eyes fail for —, saying "When will you comfort me?"
103. How sweet are — to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!
116. Uphold me according to —, that I may live; and let me not be ashamed of my hope.
123. My eyes fail for Your salvation and Your righteous —.
133. Direct my steps by —, and let no iniquity have dominion over me.
140. — is very pure; therefore Your servant loves it.
148. My eyes are awake through the night watches, that I may meditate on —.
154. Plead my cause and redeem me; revive me according to —.
158. I see the treacherous and am disgusted, because they do not keep —.
162. I rejoice at — as one who finds great treasure.
170. Let my supplication come before You; deliver me according to —.
172a. My tongue shall speak of —.

WAYS (ORACH)
15b. I contemplate —.

WONDROUS WORKS (NIPHLAH)
27b. I will meditate on —.

NAME (SHEM)
55a. I remember — in the night.
132. Look on me and be merciful to me, per Your custom (MISHPAT) toward those who love —.

FAITHFULNESS (AMUNAH)
90. L, Your — is to all generations; You established the earth and it abides.

NONE OF THE ABOVE
* See 121 (MISHPAT tr. as "justice")
122. Be surety for Your servant for good; do not let the proud oppress me.

The Word of the Lord Grows

The Word of the Lord Grows
by Martin H. Franzmann
Recommended Ages: 13+

The "Seminex crisis," arising from a dispute in the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod between proponents of biblical inerrancy and historical criticism of the text, looms in the biography of this book's author, as the Wiki page linked above bears witness. Whoever wrote that seems to have chosen a phrasing that suggests Franzmann was on the side of the bad guys; but the book reviewed here bears witness to a teacher who was faithful to the word of God. Franzmann was also a professor and department chair of exegetical theology at the LCMS' St. Louis seminary and later tutor at Westfield House in Cambridge, England; my vicarage bishop was his avowed disciple and told me a lot about him. He wrote a noted commentary on Paul's letter to the Romans and some excellent and powerful hymns, several of which have been in the last few LCMS hymnals and one of which will be in the upcoming second edition of Useful Hymnns.

So there's a lot to be said for Franzmann. But this 1961 book of introduction (isagogics) to the New Testament, written well before the Seminex walkout (1974), makes the case better than I can for his literary strength, his theological insight, and his pastoral heart for the practical concerns of applying Scripture to the study of Scripture. This book shows Franzmann to be a sound thinker, a graceful writer, and a robust student of the full counsel of God. His writing is breathtakingly economical, forceful, and direct. His analysis of the content and meaning of the 27 canonical books of the New Testament is saturated with on-point biblical references. And his response to destructive higher criticism's speculative fancies regarding the integrity, authorship, and origins of those books is cool, calm, and devastatingly simple.

Franzmann's response is that of a faithful interpreter who demands to see compelling reasons before setting aside Scripture's self-witness and the witness of early Christian tradition, and who carefully observes how that demand has not been met. Without footnotes, without lengthy excurses, without telling off (like rosary beads) the names and fiddly positions of the historical critics concerned, which can only be of historical interest, he answers them, and focuses on presenting a positive picture of where the books of the N.T. came from in the life of the first church. He introduces the books in a way that is of immediate practical value to their students as they begin to delve deeper into exegetical study, and to teachers and preachers as they begin to expound on them.

In spite of its advancing age, I think Franzmann's book is still young and still full of usefulness to the Lutheran church. I think it would make an excellent parting gift for a young Lutheran departing for college. I think it would make a fine subject for a study-group, either of laypeople or of a ministerium, including perhaps some ministers who are not of the same persuasion. It's that persuasive. But it also has a friendly, fatherly tone and a tendency to develop themes and arguments in a beautifully, intensely scriptural way that builds to a dramatic climax and leaves the reader gasping with amazement. If Franzmann communicated like this in the classroom, it is no wonder he left such a deep impression on the men who studied under him. But we need not take it on hearsay, since there is this book.

The Word Becoming Flesh

The Word Becoming Flesh
by Horace D. Hummel
Recommended Ages: 16+ (some prior study may be indicated)

This 1979 "introduction to the origin, purpose, and meaning of the Old Testament" is part of a set of seminary or pre-seminary instruction titles that Concordia Publishing House, the publishing organ of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, put out in the wake of a traumatic controversy now remembered under the catchword "Seminex" (Seminary in Exile). Its "New Testament isagogics" companion was The Word of the Lord Grows by the late Martin H. Franzmann. I think it's important to sum up this history up-front, to make the position clear. Seminex was a dramatic 1974 walk-out by some of the faculty at Concordia Seminary (LCMS) in St. Louis, Mo., eventually merging with the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago and leading to the formation of a dissident church body called the American Evangelical Lutheran Church, which in turn joined two other Lutheran groups to form what is now the U.S.'s largest and most liberal Lutheran body, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. There is anecdotal evidence the AELC component of the merger was the seed of ELCA's sharply leftward development since then.

Meanwhile, the Seminex debacle left political and theological ripples in the LCMS that have not quite settled to this day. It arose from questions about the study of Scripture - specifically, to what extent the seminary of a church body that subscribed to the "inerrancy of Scripture" (A Brief Statement of the Doctrinal Position of the Missouri Synod, 1932) should be allowed to espouse the Bible-scholarship methods of destructive historical criticism. Then-LCMS President J.A.O. Preus threw the power of his office behind teaching the Bible as inspired Scripture; the Seminex faculty publicized the view that the only responsible scholarship was up-to-date with current critical theories. Hummel's book doesn't go into these politics, but the influence of Seminex issues is evident in the amount of space he devotes to critiquing the critics.

Hummel introduces the books of the Old Testament in terms that will be most helpful to ministers and theological students preparing to teach laypeople about them. In general terms, he discusses where, when, by whom, and in what circumstances they are believed to have been written, the condition of the Hebrew text as it comes down to us, and sometimes important variants in Greek, Latin, or other languages. He then moves on to an overview of their form, structure, style, and theological content. But at each step of this general outline, the view at eye level is mainly of the myriad ways critical scholars have cast doubt on the traditional understanding of the biblical message, along with any possible ways the faithful may refute these quibbles. He notes the extent to which skeptical scholarship has actually contributed positive insights for the faithful Bible interpreter, as well as advances in linguistics and archaeology that have effectively mooted critical theories long bandied about. He also frequently remarks on the shortcomings in many conservative Christians' approach to Old Testament texts, highlighting themes a Lutheran preacher or teacher should be keen to stress - as well as too-easy exegetical pitfalls that must be avoided.

Writing without footnotes (though under protest, to judge by his preface), Hummel states his case in an elegant style of prose that presupposes a reader of advanced literacy and some previous, at least entry-level theological study. But his argument is always eloquent, cogent, and balanced. Reading it, I picked up stuff I intend to use in my own study of Old Testament texts, if not in future teaching and preaching to others - from an outline of the Book of Leviticus that I instantly wanted to try out as a way to make that book's structure and message clear, to his hint that Leviticus and Chronicles are "absolutely indispensable collateral reading with the Psalms." I tried out a couple of Hummel's points about Esther this morning in a chat with my pastor, who was considering using that book in an upcoming program of some kind, and he seemed as surprised as I was at the intelligence of the sounds coming out of my mouth. I am also attracted by the fact that, although he isn't a slave to the priority of the Masoretic Text (which may not at all points really be "the original Hebrew"), he arranged his introduction to the books of the Old Testament in the MT order, with Torah (the five books of Moses) followed in order by the Former Prophets (Joshua, Judges, Samuel, and Kings), the Latter Prophets (Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and "the Twelve," i.e. Hosea through Malachi), and finally the "Hagiographa," or "Writings" (everything else, beginning with Psalms, ending with Chronicles; with Ezra-Nehemiah in one heap; and with the five Megilloth, books customarily associated with the chief Hebrew festivals, right in the center).

Hummel writes in a manner to lead the reader to appreciate not only the Holy Spirit's intended message through each book, but also their merits as literature. He writes to make you eager to read them again, to meditate on them in depth, and to reconsider things you may have hastily passed over in previous read-throughs. To be sure, at times he writes in a linguistic register that seems a sovereign cure for insomnia - and then again, he writes at such length that holding the book sometimes gave me hand cramps. But that length is divided into manageable chunks by the structure of the material, and the difficulty of plowing through it is at least partly a function of the complexity of the subject. Nevertheless, what Hummel manages to poke through the mental fog of your under-prepared and easily-distracted mind, if you can focus on it, is very persuasive.

Horace Hummel (unlike, alas, Franzmann) is still living, I believe. I met him once or twice at a church we both occasionally visited in southern California. I never had much chance, until I read this book, to sit at his feet and take in what he had to teach, but I can now say from experience that he is a treasure to the Lutheran faithful. But from our brief contact I carried away the impression of a still sharp and very faithful Lutheran mind. CPH has also published his two-volume commentary on Ezekiel, which is both way more recent than this book, and way out of my price range. This book, on the other hand, remains in print (though it wasn't required reading during my theological studies), and it's also available in digital form.

'Useful Hymns' and Tradition Criticism

I've been reading Horace Hummel's excellent textbook on Old Testament introduction, The Word Becoming Flesh, the last few evenings. Part of the process of studying the isagogics of the books of the Bible is coming to grips with the whole tradition of criticism, including one particular branch that becomes important when the ancient manuscripts bear witness to different versions of a book - for example, that of the prophet Jeremiah. Jeremiah's material is arranged one way in the Hebrew text on which our English translations are based (MT=Masoretic Text); but the Septuagint (LXX="The 70") offers a quite different arrangement, an extreme example of the LXX's tendency to deviate from the MT; and certain Hebrew manuscripts discovered in the mid-20th century seem to support the LXX reading. Tradition history, or tradition criticism, struggles with these problems of textual transition, asking (and perhaps never convincingly answering) how the book reached its final form, or (as in Jeremiah's case) which textual variant is the final form. It raises interesting ideas, even from the viewpoint of someone like me, who is committed without qualification to the doctrine of the Bible's verbal inspiration. It suggests there is some validity to the critics' speculated world of oral traditions and/or documents being redacted together over a period of time.

Another interesting example is the Book of Psalms, which the biblical text itself divides into five "Books of Psalms" - Psalms 1-41, 42-72, 73-89, 90-106, and 107-150. The way psalms by particular authors, or of particular types, are distributed among these five sections, or sub-books, suggests interesting things about how the book was collected and organized in the first place. It wouldn't take anything away from their verbal inspiration to suppose that, for example, each of the five sections represents a different point in history when material was added to the collection by different editorial hands, each new layer arranged according to its own distinct purposes.

All this may sound just a bit like jiggery-pokery to a newspaper writer and novel-reading slob like me. Authors, sometimes many times in a career, routinely send out into the world units of literature that rival and often greatly surpass the Pentateuch, the Psalms, or the book of Jeremiah in length; books of fiction as well as nonfiction; and except for minor editorial emendations or the compilation of an omnibus edition, their work mainly stays as it is as long as it remains in print. We may second-guess Dickens' judgment in changing the end of Great Expectations (indeed, I do); but that doesn't alter the final text of his book one bit. People like George Lucas try to retroactively rewrite some of their great contributions to our culture, but they don't get away with it unnoticed ("Han shot first!"). But mostly, one would think my writerly experience would hold: what I write in the newspaper, once the ink hits the page, is there to stay as long as copies of that issue exist. I may have to answer for it later, but once copies land on the newsstands, there's no taking it back.

But then I realized, tradition history describes exactly what's going on with my own book of devotional poetry, Useful Hymns. Consider these stages of transmission and redaction:

1. Sometime in high school, I wrote a few miserable early attempts at hymnody, and shoved them into a binder where I have kept most of the poetry (sacred or secular) that I wrote from that time through my college years. I even set a few of them to equally miserable pieces of original music. I didn't know what I was doing, but I had to start somewhere. I now shudder to recall that at least one of my very early hymns was even performed by a church choir (not when I was present). Those poor people! Apart from that, those "hymns" just stayed in that binder which, until recently, lived on a shelf in my dad's study.

2. During college, I studied writing and music theory, and spent a lot more time trying to write both poetry and music. It was still pretty immature stuff. There was one year, somewhere around 1993 I think, when my production of hymns (texts, tunes, and fully harmonized arrangements) spiked due to the slight chance that I might get one of them into a new hymnal that was being edited at about the time and place where I was studying. None of them, thank God, did get into the book, which is greatly to the credit of The Evangelical Lutheran Hymnary and its prudent editors. After my disappointment at that time, my production of hymns dropped off and I turned my creative energies toward other projects, except at wide intervals.

3. After completing my undergraduate degree in music, I attended the seminary and spent a lot of my time immersed in sacred music. All this time, by the way (and going back to my undergrad studies), I was pouring over hymnals and analyzing what made hymns tick, or fail to tick as the case may be. Now and then, through my seminary years and down into my brief ministry as a parish pastor, I would write a tune for an existing hymn that I thought deserved a better one, or a choral arrangement of a hymn with its existing tune, or an organ prelude on a hymn tune, or other sacred musical settings (choral arrangements of introits, a mass setting, a choral anthem on a psalm, a set of Easter Vigil pieces, etc.). I sometimes got to perform them in public, or hear them performed by others; recordings of one or two of my compositions have even been published. The coolest part about all this is that at some point, after lots and lots and lots of agonizing effort with uneven results, I broke into a groove where I could very quickly write music that consistently sounded exactly the way I meant it to; I believe this is what they call artistic maturity.

4. The same thing happened just a bit later with my writing of hymn texts. I did this only occasionally, sometimes writing two or three hymns in one year and then going through several years without writing another. After leaving parish work, I served as an assistant to the editor of a Lutheran theological journal, who sometimes involved me in his research of biblical and doctrinal topics. At times, I attempted to explore the ideas I encountered by writing hymns about them. I didn't get much encouragement from my boss, but I kept at it. I also served several years as the choir director and organist of a church in St. Louis that offered some fine opportunities to explore my creative side; I got to play some of my own chorale preludes on the organ, and heard the choir sing some of my original hymn tunes and choral arrangements. All this time, instead of adding to that binder of high school and college poetry, I was keeping up a book of my "mature" poetry in the form of a Microsoft Word document, divided into topical sections, one of which was sacred poetry.

5. Unfortunately, my dual gig at the Lutheran magazine and at the musical reins of that St. Louis church came to an end, one job ending within months of the other. It took me the better part of two years to find another full-time career. Meantime I had tons of disposable time, some of which I spent reconsidering my book of poetry. By this time, the sacred hymns were a disproportionately large part of the total work. I decided to take out the ones that were of a hymn-like character and start a separate book with them. That was when Useful Hymns started to take shape. Mind, the hymns in it were again arranged topically, without regard for when they were written. There were ones that corresponded to Sundays, seasons, or feast days of the church year. There were ones that paraphrased parts of the liturgy or of the catechism. There were hymns meditating on specific Bible passages, hymns that tackled doctrinal problems, and hymns that applied Christian comfort or encouragement to issues in every-day life.

6. At a certain point, I decided I had collected enough original hymns to make a serious attempt to publish them. So I made sure there was an appropriate tune to go with each text, and I made sure there was a harmonization to go with each tune, and I added some indexes, and came darn close to publishing an initial collection of 53 hymns on Lulu.com.

7. Before I pulled the trigger, however, I went back to that old binder of immature poetry and decided to give my earlier efforts at hymn-writing a second chance. I spent weeks revising, rewriting, deleting, adding, mostly tightening up the verbiage, sometimes making more sweeping changes. By a funny coincidence, I counted up these "scratched and dented" hymns, after repairing them as best I could, and realized there were 47 of them - expanding Useful Hymns to exactly 100 hymns. Then, I just had to massage them into the topical structure of the book, reconsidering the location of entire sections, dividing one section into two, and placing hymns written decades apart right next to each other while, at times, two hymns written in the same fit of activity ended up at opposite corners of the book. I also added a bunch of brand new tunes, and revived some old ones I had buried with my hopes of getting them published in that mid-1990s hymnary. When all that was done, I did publish Useful Hymns, and it even sold a few copies. They're out there somewhere, bearing witness to a distinct stage in the book's redaction history. But it wasn't done yet.

8. I still had some hymns in me, waiting to come out. So, immediately after publishing U.H., I began work on a second volume of original hymns that I meant to call, ahem, "Useful Hymns: Volume II." As this project developed, one of the goals I set for myself was to fill in the gaps in my "hymns for Sundays of the church year" - which, at that point, meant writing most of them.

9. I can't remember exactly when or why I changed my mind about "Volume II" and decided to combine the two volumes into one book, a Second and Expanded edition of U.H. But once I made that decision, I immediately had to reorganize the whole book, inserting the hymns I had written since publishing the First Edition into the topical and liturgical order among the ones that were already in print. That meant not only re-numbering hymns that had already seen the light of day, but also sticking place-holder hymn numbers into the sequence where I was putting hymns that I hadn't written yet. And as that plan evolved, as plans will do, I had to re-number and re-number the hymns again. I developed marvelous automated processes for doing this, by necessity. And at a certain point, when I was still a couple dozen hymns short of my new goal of at least 200 original hymns, I actually had a table of contents featuring the titles of all the hymns I intended to write. I had tunes picked for some hymns before I started writing their lyrics; though sometimes these choices changed later. And before I finished the 200th hymn according to this premeditated scheme, I had actually written a "201st" hymn that was surplus to my plans - necessitating another fit of re-numbering.

Now the book is almost ready to go up on Lulu again, more than twice its original size (more, because I also decided to include a handful each of my translations of other authors' hymns and of other authors' hymns (translation included) with my original tunes. To make the redaction-critical outlook even more confusing, I invited some other hymn-tune composers to contribute their original tunes to some of my hymns, with results that I find really exciting; among them was the last piece of text or melody to fall into place for this edition of U.H.

The upshot of all this is an arrangement of sacred poems that would surely be very confusing to somebody who came upon them and wanted to know why they were arranged as they are. If the Table of Contents were lost and the section headings were left out by, say, a pirate hymnal publisher, you might have nothing to go by except the words themselves, and maybe the melodies. Would you assume they were written in the sequence in which they appear in the book? Would you find the transitions between topical sections bizarre and abrupt? Would the "hymns for every Sunday of the church year" (historic one-year series) seem arbitrarily arranged to someone unfamiliar with that lectionary? Would the fact that most of the "heroes of faith" hymns actually were planned and written within a narrow time-span be as evident as the fact that, in other sections of the book, hymns written throughout a 25-year period, with gaps of several years between some of them, are jumbled together with no semblance of chronology? Even given a look at an extant copy of the 100-hymn First Edition, would anyone reading the Second Edition ever guess the 101 added hymns, spread throughout the whole book, were all written during approximately one year of almost obsessive-compulsive activity?

Some of my original tunes have dates on them. None of my individual hymn-texts do. The variation in literary quality and spiritual maturity may be all the tradition-historical critic has to go on as he tries to date the writing (and in some cases, redacting, or rewriting) of each poem. And I'll admit right here, while none of my earliest attempts at hymn-writing were masterpieces, and the scratched-and-dented specimens could only be improved to a degree, even some of my latest and most "mature" poems landed a little sideways of the mark I was aiming at. One can't sustain the creative drive to write 201 hymns in 25 years, especially when 101 of them are written in the 25th year, without daring some risky experiments now and then. You would burn out sooner. You would go insane. Or you just wouldn't get very far, especially through that awful Year 25. It's the kind of effort that makes me wonder whether I shouldn't just quit the hymn-writing racket for good - though it's also possible that I simply can't, now. But I can guarantee, based both on first principles and on personal experience, that even a very prolific and mature writer can creatively misfire at times, and there's no help for it.

So, when you buy the Second Edition of Useful Hymns, you'll just have to wonder: "Does this hymn's outstanding lousiness owe itself to an early or late date of composition?" You'll have to wonder and wait for the Third Edition, which will just make matters worse. Welcome, my friend, to Tradition History!

Who Told You That You Were Naked?

Genesis 3:8-11

And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. Then the Lord God called to Adam and said to him, “Where are you?” So he said, “I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself.” And He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?”

When I think back about my debate with Mr. and Mrs. Blank, I am continually impressed—or maybe the word is "depressed"—by the difficulty of overcoming a doctrinal argument based on information from outside Scripture, when the person arguing it is convinced that he is coloring within the lines of "Scripture Interprets Scripture" and "Sola Scriptura." How do you prove to that person that it is his position, and not yours, that imports data from human philosophy, reason, and experience? How, for that matter, can you be sure? A perhaps discouraging part of the answer is that you can't really expect to change anyone's convictions, much less his inmost heart, by rational arguments or empirical evidence. A man's (or woman's) mind, once formed, cannot easily be re-formed. In spiritual matters, this kind only comes out by prayer and fasting—I mean to say, by the power of the Holy Spirit. We poor, frail, stumbling, bumbling creatures can only proclaim, can only teach, can only deliver what has been delivered to us, and wait to see what the Lord makes of it.

There is comfort in this, to be sure. It means that the teacher, proclaimer, or delivery-man has no real power in himself, and therefore he has no real responsibility over the results. As long as he is faithful in what he teaches, proclaims, or delivers, he is doing all that the Lord expects of him. He does not need to torture himself, in hindsight or in foresight, over whether anyone receives his message and is changed by it. The results are in God's hands.

But there is also, running through all this, a streak of pain. When one has delved as deeply into the text as one can, and done or said all that can be done or said, it is painful to see it having no effect. It is painful to see someone you care about being led astray by vain thoughts, by teachings that undermine the simplicity of faith. It is galling to see the Word of God, which you love and serve, being twisted and made of no effect. And a feeling of helplessness is at the bottom of it all, when in spite of all your efforts to gain an open door to the word of Christ, the other person's mind remains resolutely closed.

This takes my mind back to the very first recorded word of rebuke that the Lord addressed to sinful man: "Who told you that you were naked?" (Genesis 3:11). Adam and Eve had listened to the voice of the serpent. They had entertained his advice to try the fruit God had forbidden them to eat. They had considered his suggestion that it would make them wise to a difference between good and evil. They had, for the first time, conceived the possibility of a good that was not given by God, an alternative to what He had designed for them. The seed of evil was planted in them the moment that thought entered their hearts, even before their teeth cut into the flesh of that fruit. It could not be unthought. It would go on to influence the form of every thought after that.

Already, the moment after they ate the forbidden fruit, it occurred to them that they were naked. Already, they perceived their lack of something that, only a moment before, they had never conceived of needing or wanting. Already, they began to judge what was good and what was evil by lights other than the Word of God. Was it their empirical observation that they had no clothes on? Perhaps; but surely this was no great news to them, and how could they miss something that had never entered their minds before? Was it their sensory experience of tender skin exposed to a chilly draft? Perhaps; but surely the timetable of antediluvian climate change did not progress that quickly! Was this sudden awareness of their nakedness a psychological side-effect of a guilty conscience? Perhaps, but observe how quickly the first couple moved onto the track of excuses and self-justification (Genesis 3:12-13). Perhaps, on the contrary, their sudden shame was a reproach not on themselves, but on their Creator who had overlooked their (lately discovered) need for a publicly presentable outfit. Perhaps it was all part of the package the serpent had sold them—the "listen to a voice other than God's" package—the "decide for yourselves what is good and what is evil" package—the same package out of which we are still taking things, new and old, and insinuating them into the Word of God as we know it.

God's question in Genesis 3:11 is like the question I wanted the Blanks to consider: "Where are you getting this from?" Who gave you the distorted, tinted, clouded lens through which you are reading Scripture? From where did this filter come, through which you are straining the Word of God? Who told you that with these lenses and filters on, from whomever and wherever they may have come, you were still gazing upon the naked text? Who told you that with this veil of Moses over your eyes, or in this dark mirror, you would see God and His things clearly? Who led you to believe that this was Scripture Alone?

Dear Father in heaven, bring Your powerful Spirit to bear on our shuttered and bolted minds, so that Your Word might break through. Loosen the roots of our transitory feelings and experiences, our pet ideas, the thoughts and reasonings of men, and especially the suggestions of the evil one, so that the Word of Your Son, Christ Jesus, may be planted in their place, take root, and bear fruit abundantly. In His name, Amen.

Coded Hermeneutics

Further to my rant about the coded meanings of "sola scriptura," and the danger of its oversimplified application to bible interpretation...

Briefly, in review, "sola scriptura" (the text alone) is too often "coded language" for one or more of the following hidden assumptions, any of which can get in the way of treating the holy text with respect, honesty, and objectivity:

• "I have sufficient expertise in reading the Bible to judge whether it teaches something or not, without any help from you (and if I haven't seen it there so far, I'm never going to see it)."
• "All I need to know about religion, I can and do learn solely by reading the Bible (and anything I had learned beforehand, from whoever taught me to interpret it, is hermeneutically insignificant—like the dark matter that makes up 84% of the mass of the universe)."
• "If God expects me to believe something that I find hard to accept, the burden of proof is on him (and it may take mile-high letters of fire to change my mind)."
• "God's revelation is always clear and never vague or confusing (so if I run across any word or assertion that conflicts with my reason, I stroll past it, whistling, and pretend it is not there)."

A second "coded hermeneutic" is the famous "Scripture interprets Scripture," which I discussed in passing during my debate with the Blanks. Again, I see some hidden assumptions riding the backdraft of this important principle:

• "If I find the tension between two biblical teachings too uncomfortable to maintain, all I need do is marshal a few verses proving the one and—poof!—the other disappears. Thus, no patient acceptance of a difficult statement, paradox, or mystery will be necessary."
• "If one passage says something I disagree with, I can veto it by quoting any other passage that superficially seems to support my views—no matter how remote it may be from the context, or how irrelevant to the teaching in question. Because, don't you know, all Bible verses have equal authority in relation to any topic."
• "The catena of Bible verses (or even just references) that I was forced to memorize at a crucial stage of my faith formation—or maybe I swallowed them willingly because they seemed to 'make sense' at the time—contain the answer to anything. It will never be necessary for me to reconsider my position, even in the face of overwhelming biblical evidence."

The third "coded hermeneutic" I want to consider today is the "Inerrancy of Scripture." This concept was coined amid the early 20th-century Pentecostal and Charismatic movement and spread like wildfire throughout the Evangelical movement and conservative, "mainline" denominations. Without entertaining even the slightest suspicion that the Bible contains errors, however, I worry about the cost of accepting "inerrancy" into our hermeneutical panoply. For one thing, there are too many irreconcilable schools of thought on just what "inerrancy" means. For another thing, there are too many disturbingly disparate doctrines that all claim to be founded on the study of the same "inerrant" text.

In the third place is a concern frequently pointed out by the magazine where I worked until recently. To wit: A definition of the nature and character of God's Word that only discusses the Bible (as opposed to other forms taken by God's Word), or that only stresses authority, clarity, sufficiency, and inerrancy but goes no further, ignores the best part of what Scripture teaches about itself. No "doctrine of the Bible"—nor a body of doctrine built on it—can be complete without showing that God's Word is living, active, powerful, efficacious, killing, life-giving, and at work in us and among us. It makes such a huge difference that it might be the right answer (or a right answer) to the often-asked question, "What is unique about Lutheranism?"

But in the fourth place, the proposition that one's theology is based on "biblical inerrancy" also has about it the whiff of a coded meaning or two:

• "Everything printed and bound within the covers of the Bible is beyond question. (And by the way, have you turned in your check for a copy of the Gladly the Cross-Eyed Bear Self-Study Bible with Expanded Footnotes? Hurry up, because it takes a lot of pages to print a Bible with an inch of Scripture to every six of commentary, and paper doesn't grow on trees you know!)"
• "If you disagree with our interpretation of Scripture, no matter how novel our position may be or how far back in church history yours goes, you are a damnably counter-scriptural heretic (I love that phrase!)." From which it may be further inferred:
  
  • "Only those who subscribe to our sectarian views constitute the true Christian Church on earth."
  • "The majority of so-called Church History is the chronicle of an unreal semblance of Christianity, because the Holy Spirit deserted the apostles and has only come back to earth in this latter day, now that we have restored Jesus' true teachings." (Several restorationist and Anabaptist teachers have said pretty much exactly this, flat out.)

I'm saving for a later post, when time and energy are more in my favor, a refresher on "rightly dividing Law and Gospel," and an essay on whether God (or more specifically, Christ) wouldn't ever seriously teach something that his audience couldn't be expected to understand.

Being Honest About the Text (Part 2)

In Part 1, I shared the gently edited text of my debate with a Protestant couple about infant baptism. Their contention was that the Lutheran teaching that Baptism has saving, regenerating, forgiving, sanctifying power, which also applies to infants, is a damning, counter-biblical heresy. In response, apart from quoting the clearest New Testament witnesses to Baptism (all of which favor the Lutheran teaching), I more or less said that the burden is on them to prove that the Bible teaches the contrary—a burden of proof that that, in my opinion, they have not met.

In Part 2, it is not my intention to continue this debate about Baptism. Rather, I want to use it as an example to illustrate some concerns about biblical hermeneutics that arose in my mind while I was considering how to respond to Mr. and Mrs. Blank of Anywhere, USA.

First, a matter of anthropology. The classic Reformed system of theology, from which pretty much all American Protestantism is either derived, modified, or in rebellion, is founded on certain assumptions about human reason. Reason, or at least "enlightened logic and reasoning," as Mr. Blank puts it, can not only be relied upon but may even be considered a source of knowledge alongside (though perhaps slightly lower than) the holy text. The proper interpretation of that text cannot conflict with reason. God (it is further assumed) would not reveal anything that is obscure to human reason—unless, again in Mr. Blank's words, we are speaking of "the darkened reasoning of the unregenerate, carnal mind." Following the fingerposts of reason, one must inevitably arrive at a form of doctrine relatively similar to the content of Calvin's Institutes, or the Three Forms of Unity, or the Westminster Standards, or the Thirty-Nine Articles, or [insert the title your sect's founding statement of faith here]. Obviously, the unanimity of consensus flowing from all this enlightened reasoning is too overwhelming to be ignored. (Irony off)

The thing that gets me, anthropologically speaking, is that the reasonable, rational, Reformed system of doctrine does not allow for any absolute certainty that your (i.e. any individual's) reason is enlightened, as opposed to "darkened, unregenerate, and carnal." To be sure, there is that decree that the Sovereign God made in eternity, before the beginning of time, specifying who among us is destined to be redeemed, enlightened, and saved without fail, and who is to be hardened, befuddled, and damned without reprieve. But seek what evidence you may, you can never be certain you are of the elect—never, that is, until the veil is pulled aside either by death or by the Lord's coming. Any evidence that you are a sincere Christian can be faked; a "seeming saint" may not even realize that his felt faith is but a tormenting fume from hell. The rest of the story is as easily told as counting the petals of the TULIP. As long as you're outside of grace, you're Totally depraved, and so your judgment in spiritual matters is not to be relied upon—see again Mr. Blank's "darkened, unregenerate, carnal." And in the event that there's a devil set aside for you, by dint of Unconditional (double) predestination, your reason will never be anything but spiritually darkened, unregenerate, and carnal—no matter whether it seems otherwise during this life. Since Jesus' atoning death is Limited to those pre-selected for grace, none of God's promises are meant for you and so any faith you might put in them is vain. And since grace is Irresistable (but only to the elect) and the faith is Persistent (but only in the elect), any resemblance between a hardened reprobate and a sincere Christian must be coincidental. After all, the fact that they end up in hell will prove (retroactively, at least) that they never truly received Christ, or were even offered Him, since they could not have resisted Him if offered or fallen away if received.

It's one of those brilliant rationalizations that can never be falsified by any reasoning whatsoever, because it turns around and devours its own tail, world without end. And the upshot is: You may think you're a sound Bible interpreter, but for all you know—for all you can possibly know with any degree of certainty in this life—you are just a sham Christian reading the text through a veil of carnal, unregenerate, darkened reason. Epistemologically, this system provides no basis for evaluating the aptness of its own application of the holy text. Simply put, assuming TULIP—which is nothing if not a monument to the application of human reason to the systematization of biblical theology—no theologically consistent exegete can rely on his own reason. Again, epistemologically speaking, if the election to grace (which no one can be sure he himself possesses) is a prerequisite for reading Scripture through the lens of "enlightened reason," and if any seeming Christian could be applying darkened reason unawares, then all reason is purely subjective and may prove, in the end, to have been a satanic deception. And thus the rational assumptions that create this epistemological crisis must, themselves, be suspect. And so round and round in an endless, paradoxical conundrum.

But that's just the appetizer. Morsels of the meatier main course protrude, in a half-baked state, out of odd and sundry paragraphs of my debate with Mark and Dru. The crux of the problem is whether phrases like "sola scriptura," "the inerrancy of Scripture," "Scripture interprets Scripture," etc., are sufficiently resilient as hermeneutics to bear weight in a doctrinal system that deals honestly and respectfully with the holy text. I am, suddenly, in doubt. The observations that trouble me:

First, "sola scriptura" ("the text alone"), as I saw the Blanks applying it, seems to have a coded meaning. This coded meaning is somehow intertwined with the sentiment, which the Blanks are far from alone in expressing, that "I have read the Bible cover to cover every year for the last 25 years, so I'm pretty sure I know what is and isn't in it." This avowal of expertise always seems to appear in breathtaking proximity to either an assertion that Scripture says something it doesn't, or a denial of something that it definitely says.

Another piece of baggage carried by "Sola Scriptura" is the assumption that the burden of proof lies on God. The purpose of His Word is then not to proclaim the truth with creative, renewing power, but to prove certain arguments, directly, explicitly, unmabiguously, and in terms too strong and specific to be gotten around. "Certain things," I say; these strict rules of evidence don't apply to everything—and we reserve for ourselves the right to determine what doctrines must be established by such a strong test of scripturalness. We require God to close every conceivable loophole, to give us multiple witnesses, to convince the jury beyond a reasonable doubt, solely on the basis of evidence that no reasoning can rationalize away—though such evidence can never be, once our reason is fore-armed with half of a Bible verse quoted out of context. Using this as the basis of a transparently fallacious syllogism, we can then browbeat anyone who opposes us with the charge that they are—what was my phrase? ah! yes—damnably counter-scriptural heretics.

Mark the number and magnitude of novel teachings and sectarian dogmas that have flown under the flag of "Sola Scriptura!" Mark the aptitude of annual, cover-to-cover Bible readers who, for all their expertise, can actually interpret every verse that directly refers to Baptism as though the words "washing," "water," or "baptism" weren't there. Mark how they will actually contradict the primary assertion of a sentence's main clause on the basis of an adverbial clause or a complementary, neighboring sentence. Mark how readily they will begin a sentence with "My Bible never says" and continue it with an almost word-for-word Bible quote. Mark how they will challenge Holy Writ to disprove an idea of recent origin, which some clever-boots somehow convinced them was biblical, and then ignore anything the text says in answer, unless it meets the exacting test which they insist must be met before they will consider their claim falsified. And then mark how they will tar anyone who simply, unquestioningly believes what the Bible says, with the epithet of "heretic" and the charge of reading foreign ideas into the text. Mark what "sola scriptura" means according to their code!

Again, I do not want to go over my arguments regarding infant Baptism again. The issue, spotlighted by my controversy with the Blanks, simply makes for a good illustration of what troubles me. Can "sola scriptura" stand up as a principle of biblical interpretation? Not, I believe, if that means that infant baptism is a heresy because the Bible doesn't explicitly mention infants being baptized, or because it doesn't specifically command that they be baptized. "Sola scriptura" doesn't deserve the dignity of a serious hermeneutic if it means subjecting God to the role of a prosecuting attorney who needs to prove anything we choose to question beyond a ghost of a doubt. There are many doctrines that nearly every Protestant believes without question on the basis of far less biblical evidence—including some of the dubious assumptions on which the Blanks based their reasoning. I would have expected people who profess to put so much stock in the sovereignty of God to be more respectful of His Word. But then again, if they have read His holy text over and over and still claim, on the basis of "sola scriptura," to believe what they do about what it says and doesn't say, they must either be liars, blinded and deluded by the devil, or reading the text through the veil of darkened, unregenerate reason. Which of these would be the most charitable assumption?

Is "sola scriptura" up to hermeneutical snuff? There are some reasons for concern. First, if you can't read the text rightly without already being enlightened and regenerate, then either you are approaching the naked text as an unregenerate heathen (and thus unable to interpret it rightly), or you are bringing knowledge to the text that you received elsewhere. Give credit where credit is due. Who told you how to interpret the text? And so, even if they aren't in the room with you and the holy book, can you really claim to be alone with the naked text?

Second, if so much depends upon reading the text rightly—up to and including the eternal destiny of those who hear and read your account of it—can you dare confront the naked text on your own, without any reference to the insights of prior interpreters? How can you be sure you haven't missed a crucial distinction, or a historically significant textual variant? Do you know every verse of the Bible by heart, including all the variant readings in the original tongue? Have you honestly considered every possible translation and interpretation, without any aids to memory outside the text itself? Can you infallibly and exhaustively cross-reference every Bible verse that may be relevant to the text immediately before you, or even judge which verses really are relevant, without being prompted by a prior interpreter or interpretive aid? And if you do consult such resources, how did you decide which authorities to trust? Ryrie's Study Bible, Thompson's Chain Reference Bible, and Elwell's Analytical Concordance (for example) are all examples of interpretive aids that bring a decided bias, and in some cases a downright heretical one, to their selection of which Scripture ought to interpret which. They illustrate how the choice of which passages you judge to be relevant to the text before you can have a big impact on how you interpret it. And can you really go "sola scriptura" while deciding which, if any, translations or editions of the holy text to read, and what contributions by which lexicographers, grammarians, commentators, teachers, and preachers to take into account before you arrive at your interpretation?

I used to groan with impatience whenever somebody answered "Scripture alone!" with "Yeah, but when is Scripture alone?" But let's be honest with ourselves—or, if we need something that commands our respect, let's be honest with the text: When we say that the Bible must be the "sole source and norm for all doctrine and practice" in the church, we're not actually imagining ourselves alone in a sealed room with nothing in us or around us but the naked text. Heck, we can't even find two or three exegetes who will agree on precisely what the text is! What we really mean—if "sola scriptura" is to have any objective value as a hermeneutic—is that the holy text and our interpretive tradition (embodied, for example, in a set of confessions to which we subscribe because (quia) they proclaim the truth of Scripture without error) feed into each other in a continuous loop. We accept what Scripture plainly says without trying to reason around it; we accept where it is silent without trying to fill the gap with our own "lofty speculations" (2 Corinthians 10:5); we test the form of sound words we have received (2 Timothy 1:13) only against the testimony of Scripture; we question everything we hear, placing it up against the text to see whether it is so (Acts 17:11); but we accept that, after all, we have not received the Word of God from the Bible alone, and that before we dare approach the "naked text" on our own, we must first hear the Gospel proclaimed and receive instruction in sound doctrine. And so the circle keeps turning: Scripture informing and correcting what we believe, teach (or are taught), and confess, and the preaching and teaching we have received preparing us to read the text with better comprehension.

I want to go on further to discuss the coded meanings of other hermeneutical principles, such as "Scripture interprets Scripture"—though I may have covered that sufficiently in my debate with the Blanks—and the "Inerrancy of Scripture," which Protestants customarily braid together with Scripture's Authority, Clarity, and Sufficiency, to use as a flail against anybody who doesn't read the text with the same horse-blinders that we wear. Then there's the contention (also covered somewhat in Part 1) that God would never tell us anything contrary to reason, or anything that we wouldn't understand; and, of course, the whole Law-Gospel issue (again), which lay at the bottom of so many of the Blanks' assertions about Baptism being an ordinance we are required to perform. What past discussions have not covered, there will be room for in future installments. Until then, my sage advice is to put less stock in how many pages, chapters, or books of the Bible you have read this year... and go to church!