Category: Questions and Answers

Were Rebekah and Jacob Justified in Deceiving Isaac?

~ Alastair Roberts ~ 4 Comments

Having read Jordan’s Primeval Saints I find that he interprets the life of Jacob through a different lens from a more recent reformation reading. Specifically in the story of Jacob “stealing” the birthright, Jordan posits that Rebekah and Jacob are righteously deceiving Isaac in order for him to “regain sight” and be restored. Because the promise to Jacob had already been given, Rebekah and Jacob were acting righteously, even in lying. Jordan says that because Isaac has turned into a Tyrant, the only way to restore him is through deception. Curious to hear your thoughts on this passage which may/may not be often misunderstood. What is going on and are we to condemn Jacob/Rebekah for what they did or see it as an act of faith?

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1 Corinthians 14 and Women’s Silence in Church

~ Alastair Roberts ~ 5 Comments

I have a friend who is from a non-religious background who is interested in Christianity and is reading the bible for the first time. She asked me to explain 1 Corinthians 14:33b-35. “As in all the churches of the saints, the women should keep silent in the churches. For they are not permitted to speak, but should be in submission, as the Law also says. If there is anything they desire to learn, let them ask their husbands at home. For it is shameful for a woman to speak in church.” She said, “I don’t know how to make sense of that.” I’m also curious (and unsure) about that passage as “keep silent”, or it being “shameful for a women to speak in church” and needing to only ask questions of their own husbands goes far beyond men only as elders, teaching or having authority. As I type this I wonder if I should only ask my own husband about this. 😉 We have five daughters, three of them are young adults now, believers with a high view of scripture, and they also wonder about this verse. We’ve had a lot of discussions about this in our home, and we are curious about your views.

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Did the Scriptural Authors Intend their Figural Meanings?

~ Alastair Roberts ~ 6 Comments

I’m wondering to what degree you believe that the original authors of the text(s) were deliberately employing [analogies, types, themes, metaphors, “word pictures”, etc.]? Was the intellectual complexity that you perceive present in the original authorship context, or has the Spirit has orchestrated a significantly bigger picture than those authors could have ever intended?

For example, on your recent answer to the Pool of Bethsaida question, you draw attention to and relevance from the 38-year infirmity of the healed man, and offer a many-minutes-long unpacking of the significance of that number and how it fits the oft-employed water theme in the book of John, etc. My question(s), as applied to this particular situation, would be something like the following:

– Was the man really suffering for exactly 38 years, or did John just pick a number that fit the metaphor he intended to convey?

– Did John know the significance of 38 years. Was he intentionally communicating as deeply as [you believe], or is that depth something the Spirit applies “at a layer above”, that is, across the larger biblical narrative?

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