Hebrews 12:6 uses "scourges" (from the Septuagint of Proverbs 3:12) to describe God's fatherly discipline; the intensified language is contextually appropriate fatherly correction, not brutal punishment.

Q6 from Stephanie: Hebrews 12:5-6 quotes Proverbs 3:11-12 but ends with "scourge" — why does it imply God brutally whips every believer?

Plato's influence on Christianity: limited and often overstated due to caricatures of ancient thought

Q2 from Tony Oshikonlu: What does Plato have to do with Christianity? Was Plato as influential on Christianity as the Bible?

Does God have a sense of humor? Yes — Scripture confirms it, and pleasure/humor are good gifts not inherently sinful

Q4 from Silas Abrahamson: Does God have a sense of humor?

Mary did not remain a perpetual virgin — Scripture clearly indicates she had other children with Joseph after Jesus

Q11 from Lovisa Bengtsen: Did Mary remain a virgin? Were the brothers of Jesus actually cousins? If she had other sons, why did John need to care for her?

1 John 3:4-10 does not teach sinless perfectionism — the Greek present tense indicates habitual lifestyle of sin, not single acts

Q14 from Shauna Whitting: Does 1 John 3:4-10 mean you are not a real Christian if you still struggle with sin?

Jesus calling Judas friend at the betrayal (Matthew 26:50) is likely both literal and ironic simultaneously.

Question 7 from A.D. Chan about the Greek word hetairos in Matthew 26:50.

The gospel presentation should be adapted to the individual; the content stays constant but the approach changes.

Question 13 from Steph T about how to summarize the gospel with strangers or those from different religions.

Q: What does "born of water" mean in John 3:5? Two interpretations: (1) physical birth (water/amniotic fluid) vs. spiritual birth — two births, not three; (2) "water and spirit" as one birth in Greek, referring to the spiritual reality baptism represents, not literal water baptism. Cornelius (Acts 10) proves baptism isn't required for salvation.

Q&A — born of water (John 3:5)

Refuting Dean Odel's claim that Revelation 20:9 ("breadth/plane of the earth") proves flat earth via Greek word "platos." Problems: (1) platos means "wide/broad," not "flat" — Strongs says "broad"; (2) the passage describes a specific military march, probably across the valley of Megiddo; (3) earth doesn't mean planet here, just land.

Revelation 20:9 Greek word — breadth, not flat

What to do to be saved (Romans 10:9): (1) "Believe in your heart" = intellectual belief PLUS reliance/trust (Greek pisteuo = entrust). Know the resurrection is true AND rely on Christ for salvation. (2) "Confess Jesus is Lord" = honest commitment to his authority, not just saying words. Lordship means he's your boss, king, authority. Repentance = turning from rebellion to yielding to God.

How to respond — belief and confession

Can a Christian be demon-possessed? Mike distinguishes possession from influence/oppression. Christians have the Holy Spirit indwelling them — demon possession (ownership/control) seems incompatible with the Spirit's presence. But Christians can be oppressed, influenced, and harassed by demons. The demoniac in Mark 5 was fully controlled; Christians may experience lesser forms of spiritual attack but not total possession.

Demon possession vs oppression in Christians

1 John 3:9 ("whoever is born of God does not sin") doesn't mean Christians never sin. 1 John 1:8-10 in the SAME letter says "if we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves" and "if we confess our sins, he is faithful to forgive." The Greek tense in 3:9 indicates ongoing habitual practice, not individual acts. A Christian won't be characterized by a lifestyle of sin, but will still fail and need forgiveness.

1 John 3:9 — sinless perfection refuted

Argument 1 — Jesus's death predictions are very early: (a) Matthew 16:17-23 contains Semiticisms ("son of Jonah," "flesh and blood," "Hades") pointing to Aramaic origins, not later Greek tradition. (b) Mark 9:31 has a paronomasia (pun) in Aramaic: "son of man handed into the hands of men." (c) 1 Corinthians 11:24-25 (Last Supper) is written before the Gospels. (d) Paul distinguishes Jesus's commands from his own (1 Cor 7) — proving he doesn't invent words of Jesus.

Argument 1 — earliness of predictions

Mike affirms the rapture doctrine from 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17 as plain biblical teaching. The Greek harpazo ("caught up") → Latin rapturus → English "rapture." He's unsettled on pre/mid/post-trib timing but firmly believes in the event itself. Holds a futurist view of Revelation — future events not yet fulfilled.

Rapture — affirmed, timing unsettled

Feeling the presence of a dead loved one: concerning because it may lead to attempting to contact the dead, which the OT consistently condemns. If you're contacting any spirit, it's not the deceased — you're opening yourself to whatever spirit wants to respond. Encourage the person to cherish memories but not pursue spiritual contact. The practice of praying to the dead entered church history through the Eastern church's interaction with pagan culture.

Contacting the dead — biblically condemned

The phrase "the Lord" (ha kurios) in Mark 11:3 deliberately fuses God's identity with Jesus — Mark's subtle but profound Christology of Christ's deity.

Greek analysis of "the Lord has need of it" in Mark 11:3

Psalm 118 is the key text the crowd quotes — it prophesies the rejected cornerstone (Messiah rejected by Israel's leaders) whom God establishes anyway. Jesus quotes it about himself in Mark 12.

Detailed exposition of Psalm 118 and its messianic significance

Du Toit redefines sin itself (hamartia) through the etymological fallacy — deriving fake "root meanings" to avoid the actual meaning. Sin becomes "living out of context with your blueprint" instead of moral rebellion against God.

The etymological fallacy and the Mirror Bible's abuse of Greek

The Gospel of Thomas is a mid-2nd century Gnostic forgery, not a legitimate alternate gospel. It's a sayings collection borrowing from Matthew/Luke with added Greek philosophical content inconsistent with a 1st-century Jewish teacher.

Q1: Thoughts on the Gospel of Thomas?

1 John 3:4 ("sin is lawlessness") doesn't mean Christians must keep the Mosaic Law — "lawlessness" means rebellion against God's moral authority, not specifically violating Torah commands. The New Testament redefines how we relate to God's moral standards.

Q19: Does 1 John 3:4 mean the Law of Moses still applies?

About John 15 – Bearing Fruit: What do you think of the view that states that in John 15, Jesus actually said in Greek that those who don't bear fruit are lifted up instead of cut off? Is this us practicing bad Greek?

Q&A question: About John 15 – Bearing Fruit

About the Greek in Bible Translations: Pastors often say, "what the Greek REALLY says is…" Why don't translators use the Greek that pastors cite in sermons then? (Like how Peter is akin to pebble but is translated as rock.)

Q&A question: About the Greek in Bible Translations

About Gematria & Numerology: In light of today’s first question, how do you account for more subtle/compelling examples of Gematria such as JESUS (IESOUS in Greek) calculating to "888"? Contrast with "666.” 8=new life, etc.

Q&A question: About Gematria & Numerology

About the phrase “Son of Perdition”: What is the Greek meaning of “Son of Perdition”? Is it a specific person, or a general statement?

Q&A question: About the phrase “Son of Perdition”

About “Rhema” (Sword of the Spirit): Can you explain the Greek word Rhema in Ephesians 6 when it talks about the “sword of the Spirit is the Word of God?” Is it Scripture, or like a word of wisdom, knowledge, or prophecy?

Q&A question: About “Rhema” (Sword of the Spirit)

Are Souls Eternal?: Is the soul as an eternal entity more of a Greek philosophical idea, or confirmed in Scripture? Do you have any biblical references for an eternal soul?

Q&A question: Are Souls Eternal?

About Becoming a Disciple: How do you become a disciple in light of Matthew 28: 19? Can you be unsaved yet still a disciple? I haven’t found the Greek word (μαθητευω) elsewhere. Seems to normally be μαθητης (ex. Acts 11: 29; 19: 30; 21:4, 16).

Q&A question: About Becoming a Disciple

About “Unknown”/ Tongues in 1 Cor.: What do you make of the added word “unknown” in 1 Corinthians 14:2-3, which is not in the original Greek? Could it mean that it is not a different sort of tongues, rather, that no one understands them?

Q&A question: About “Unknown”/ Tongues in 1 Cor.

Why Isn’t the Greek OT More Authoritative?: Why isn’t the Greek Old Testament more authoritative? Its manuscripts are older and are referenced in the New Testament. E.g., Jesus mentions Greek version of Isaiah 61 with “blind” in Luke 4: 18.

Q&A question: Why Isn’t the Greek OT More Authoritative?

Does Scripture Teach Familial Marriage?: 1 Corinthians 7: 36-38 seems like Paul is saying someone can marry their own daughter. The translations usually say fiancée but when I looked at the Greek the word used means virgin daughter.

Q&A question: Does Scripture Teach Familial Marriage?

How Were Jesus’ Words Translated?: Did the synoptic writers translate Jesus’ words from Aramaic to Greek? Does that partially explain why they don’t match each other exactly, because they translated to best explain His teaching?

Q&A question: How Were Jesus’ Words Translated?

About the Septuagint & Masoretic Text: Is the Greek LXX (Septuagint) considered a flawed copy? The genealogy of Shem adds hundreds of years which is quite significant. Is the Masoretic Text inerrant, or am I misunderstanding inerrancy?

Q&A question: About the Septuagint & Masoretic Text

Has Christianity Changed Over Time?: How do you know the Christianity you believe is the same they were practicing in the early Church if history says Constantine and the Greeks changed things?

Q&A question: Has Christianity Changed Over Time?

John 15 – Will I be “Taken Away”?: What are your thoughts on John 15:2 and the Greek word for "takes away"? I've heard that it would be more accurately translated as "raise up." This word seems to change the meaning of the verse.

Q&A question: John 15 – Will I be “Taken Away”?

The Book of James vs. Jacob: I was looking at the Greek in James' epistle (1:1) and his name in the Greek is Iakobos. Why do we call it "the Book of James" if the Greek more closely resembles Jacob (Iakobos)?

Q&A question: The Book of James vs. Jacob

Why Didn’t Greek Spread?: Why didn't Greek spread through the Christian world like Arabic did through the Muslim one? Both revere holy books, yet Greek didn't become widespread. Surely it would have made understanding easier.

Q&A question: Why Didn’t Greek Spread?

Winger says a wife co-teaching an adult Sunday school Bible study IS an elder-type role and would be wrong under his complementarian view. However, co-teaching a topical class (like parenting) is NOT eldership and he'd be fine with it. He warns against creating Pharisaic rules but draws the line at verse-by-verse Bible teaching.

Bonus Q after viewer watched WIM series: Is a woman helping her husband teach a co-ed adult Sunday school class an elder-type role?

“The River” = Heaven?: Is there a biblical basis for songs about “crossing the river” into Heaven, or is that just Greek mythology? Is the Jordan River a legitimate biblical metaphor for dying and going to the Promised Land/Heaven?

Q&A question: “The River” = Heaven?

Agape vs. Phileo Love: Are agape and phileo love synonymous in Greek? John 3: 19 & John 12: 43 use agape for loving darkness and men's praise, respectively, while John 5: 20 uses phileo to describe the Father's love for the Son.

Q&A question: Agape vs. Phileo Love

9..Other Greek manuscripts that weigh in on this

The term "abomination" in both Hebrew and Greek consistently refers to an idol or false object of worship, and "desolation" relates to the temple being made spiritually or physically desolate. The phrase "standing where it should not be" — and Matthew's "in the holy place" — point to an idol being set up inside the temple precincts.

Linguistic and textual analysis of the phrase "abomination of desolation"

The literary alliteration of Hebrews 1:1 in Greek (poly-meros, poly-tropos, patrasin, prophetais — all P-sounds) signals this is high-level, carefully crafted Greek prose. God speaking "in many times and many ways" through the prophets contrasts with the singular, final word through the Son — a deliberate narrowing funnel from diverse OT revelation to the one person of Jesus.

Greek alliteration in Hebrews 1:1; the "many-to-one" funnel structure of divine revelation

Peppiatt's Quotation-Refutation Theory on 1 Corinthians 14:34-35

[Lucy Peppiatt](logosres:LLS:9781498201476;ref=bible.1Co14.34-35) (now [Peppiatt Crawley](logosres:LLS:9781498201476;ref=bible.1Co14.34-35)) argues vv. 34-35 are not Paul's words but the Corinthians'

Podcast Q2: "Shameful" Is Stronger Than You Let On (Impact 8/10, Reconsideration 6/10)

"You moved past the word 'shameful' fairly quickly, but the Greek there — *aischron* — is the same word Paul uses in **Eph 5:12** for things 'too shameful even to mention,' and it carries the sense of

Podcast Q3: What Happens When You Read Verse 36? (Impact 9/10, Reconsideration 6/10)

"One thing I noticed you didn't address was verse 36, which starts with the Greek particle eta — 'Or did the word of God come from you? Or are you the only ones it has reached?' Greek lexicons like [F

Commentary: One Flesh Cannot Be Hierarchy

Ardavanis says: > "This beautiful picture of men and women, a groom and a bride... this is the central metaphor in all of the Bible... complementary yet different sexes that come together in union pa

Children's Minister vs. Pastor — The Self-Contradiction

At 13:52, he claims that a pastor is an elder and an elder is a pastor, and says this is why they do not call a children's minister a "children's pastor" — because a pastor is an elder. Words really

"If Any Man" — τις Is Gender-Neutral, and 1Ti 3 Does Not Exclude Women

At 14:32, he claims that one of the qualifications for a pastor is "most noticeably" that the elder be a man, which he states is THE consistent pattern of male leadership established in Ge and seen th