Category: Greek

More on the Connecticut school shooting: the haughtiness of humanity will collapse, says Isaiah

I wondered tonight whether this week’s Greek Isaiah readings might have something to say to the recent school shooting in Connecticut. Indeed, here is Isaiah 2:17-19 (my translation from the Greek):

Then every person will be brought low,
and the haughtiness of humanity will collapse,
and the Lord alone will be exalted in that day.

And they will hide everything that is made by hand,

as they bring them into caves
and into the clefts of rocks
and into the holes of the earth,
from before the fear of the Lord
and from the glory of his strength,
when he rises up to strike the earth.

The word for that which is made by hand (τὰ χειροποίητα) refers to idols. But as I read this I couldn’t help but think of the promise from Psalm 46:

He makes wars cease
to the ends of the earth.
He breaks the bow and shatters the spear;
he burns the shields with fire.

…bows, spears, and shields, of course, all being made by hand. I suggested here that a 21st century way of reading that verse could be something like, “He crushes guns and diffuses bombs, he destroys human weapons of destruction.”

One day either we or God himself will bring all our weapons of destruction–indeed, all our evil inclinations–into “caves” and “into the clefts of rocks and into the holes of the earth,” as we recoil at the glory of God’s strength. He will make wars cease; he will end all senseless violence; he will crush evil and wipe it away from the face of the earth.

Lord, as we mourn in the meantime, please hasten that day.

Greek Isaiah in a Year, Week 3=Isaiah 2:16-3:21

isaiah lxx

We’re through two weeks of Greek Isaiah in a Year. The Facebook group continues to grow–now 175 readers. Anyone can still join. And some are reading apart from the Facebook group, too.

Tomorrow (Monday) begins week 3. Below is the schedule and text for Monday through Friday, using the text from R.R. Ottley’s Book of Isaiah According to the Septuagint. (Ottley is here on Amazon, here in Logos, and here as a free, downloadable pdf, since it’s public domain.) The full reading plan is here (pdf).

Monday, December 17: Isaiah 2:16-21

16 καὶ ἐπὶ πᾶν πλοῖον θαλάσσης, καὶ ἐπὶ πᾶσαν θέαν πλοίων κάλλους· 17 καὶ ταπεινωθήσεται πᾶς ἄνθρωπος, καὶ πεσεῖται ὕψος ἀνθρώπων, καὶ ὑψωθήσεται Κύριος μόνος ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ. 18 καὶ τὰ χειροποίητα πάντα κατακρύψουσιν, 19 εἰσενέγκαντες εἰς τὰ σπήλαια καὶ εἰς τὰς σχισμὰς τῶν πετρῶν καὶ εἰς τὰς τρώγλας τῆς γῆς, ἀπὸ προσώπου τοῦ φόβου Κυρίου καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς δόξης τῆς ἰσχύος αὐτοῦ, ὅταν ἀναστῇ θραῦσαι τὴν γῆν. 20 τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ ἐκβαλεῖ ἄνθρωπος τὰ βδελύγματα αὐτοῦ τὰ ἀργυρᾶ καὶ τὰ χρυσᾶ, ἃ ἐποίησεν προσκυνεῖν, τοῖς ματαίοις καὶ ταῖς νυκτερίσιν, 21 τοῦ εἰσελθεῖν εἰς τὰς τρώγλας τῆς στερεᾶς πέτρας καὶ εἰς τὰς σχισμὰς τῶν πετρῶν, ἀπὸ προσώπου τοῦ φόβου Κυρίου καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς δόξης τῆς ἰσχύος αὐτοῦ, ὅταν ἀναστῇ θραῦσαι τὴν γῆν.

Tuesday, December 18: Isaiah 3:1-5

3 1 Ἰδοὺ δὴ ὁ δεσπότης Κύριος σαβαὼθ ἀφελεῖ ἀπὸ τῆς Ἰουδαίας καὶ ἀπὸ Ἰερουσαλὴμ ἰσχύοντα καὶ ἰσχύουσαν, ἰσχὺν ἄρτου καὶ ἰσχὺν ὕδατος, 2 γίγαντα καὶ ἰσχύοντα καὶ ἄνθρωπον πολεμιστὴν καὶ δικαστὴν καὶ προφήτην καὶ στοχαστὴν καὶ πρεσβύτερον 3 καὶ πεντηκόνταρχον καὶ θαυμαστὸν σύμβουλον καὶ σοφὸν ἀρχιτέκτονα καὶ συνετὸν ἀκροατήν· 4 καὶ ἐπιστήσω νεανίσκους ἄρχοντας αὐτῶν, καὶ ἐμπαῖκται κυριεύσουσιν αὐτῶν. 5 καὶ συμπεσεῖται ὁ λαός, ἄνθρωπος πρὸς ἄνθρωπον, καὶ ἄνθρωπος πρὸς τὸν πλησίον αὐτοῦ· προσκόψει τὸ παιδίον πρὸς τὸν πρεσβύτην, ὁ ἄτιμος πρὸς τὸν ἔντιμον.

Wednesday, December 19: Isaiah 3:6-10

6 ὅτι ἐπιλήμψεται ἄνθρωπος τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ αὐτοῦ ἢ τοῦ οἰκείου τοῦ πατρὸς αὐτοῦ λέγων Ἱμάτιον ἔχεις, ἀρχηγὸς ἡμῶν γενοῦ, καὶ τὸ βρῶμα τὸ ἐμὸν ὑπὸ σὲ ἔστω. 7 καὶ ἀποκριθεὶς ἐρεῖ ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἑκείνῃ Οὐκ ἕσομαί σου ἀρχηγός· οὐ γὰρ ἔστιν ἐν τῷ οἴκῳ μου ἄρτος οὐδὲ ἱμάτιον· οὐκ ἔσομαι ἀρχηγὸς τοῦ λαοῦ τούτου. 8 ὅτι ἀνεῖται Ἰερουσαλὴμ καὶ ἡ Ἰουδαία συμπέπτωκεν, καὶ αἱ γλῶσσαι αὐτῶν μετὰ ἀνομίας, τὰ πρὸς Κύριον ἀπειθοῦντες· διότι νῦν ἐταπεινῶθη ἡ δόξα αὐτῶν, 9 καὶ ἡ αἰσχύνη τοῦ προσώπου αὐτῶν ἀντέστη αὐτοῖς· τὴν δὲ ἁμαρτίαν αὐτῶν ὡς Σοδόμων ἀνήγγειλαν καὶ ἐνεφάνισαν. οὐαὶ τῇ ψυχῇ αὐτῶν, ὅτι βεβούλευνται βουλὴν πονηρὰν καθʼ ἑαυτῶν, 10 εἴπαντες Δήσωμεν τὸν δίκαιον, ὅτι δύσχρηστος ἡμῖν ἐστιν· τοίνυν τὰ γενήματα τῶν ἔργων αὐτῶν φάγονται.

Thursday, December 20: Isaiah 3:11-16

11 οὐαὶ τῷ ἀνόμῳ· πονηρὰ κατὰ τὰ ἔργα τῶν χειρῶν αὐτοῦ συμβήσεται αὐτῷ. 12 λαός μου, οἱ πράκτορες ὑμῶν καλαμῶνται ὑμᾶς, καὶ οἱ ἀπαιτοῦντες κυριεύουσιν ὑμῶν. λαός μου, οἱ μακαρίζοντες ὑμᾶς πλανῶσιν ὑμᾶς καὶ τὴν τρίβον τῶν ποδῶν ὑμῶν ταράσσουσιν. 13 ἀλλὰ νῦν καταστήσεται εἰς κρίσιν Κύριος, καὶ στήσει εἰς κρίσιν τὸν λαὸν αὐτοῦ· 14 αὐτὸς Κύριος εἰς κρίσιν ἥξει μετὰ τῶν πρεσβυτέρων τοῦ λαοῦ καὶ μετὰ τῶν ἀρχόντων αὐτοῦ. ὑμεῖς δὲ τί ἐνεπυρίσατε τὸν ἀμπελῶνά μου, καὶ ἡ ἁρπαγὴ τοῦ πτωχοῦ ἐν τοῖς οἴκοις ὑμῶν; 15 τί ὑμεῖς ἀδικεῖτε τὸν λαόν μου, καὶ τὸ πρόσωπον τῶν πτωχῶν καταισχύνετε;

16 Τάδε λέγει Κύριος Ἀνθʼ ὧν ὑψώθησαν αἱ θυγατέρες Σιών, καὶ ἐπορεύθησαν ὑψηλῷ τραχήλῳ καὶ νεύμασιν ὀφθαλμῶν, καὶ τῇ πορείᾳ τῶν ποδῶν ἅμα σύρουσαι τοὺς χιτῶνας καὶ τοῖς ποσὶν ἅμα παίζουσαι,

Friday, December 21: Isaiah 3:17-21

17 καὶ ταπεινώσει ὁ θεὸς ἀρχούσας θυγατέρας Σιών. καὶ Κύριος ἀποκαλύψει τὸ σχῆμα αὐτῶν 18 ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ· καὶ ἀφελεῖ Κύριος τὴν δόξαν τοῦ ἱματισμοῦ αὐτῶν, καὶ τοὺς κόσμους αὐτῶν καὶ τὰ ἐμπλόκια καὶ τοὺς κοσύμβους καὶ τοὺς μηνίσκους, 19 καὶ τὸ κάθεμα καὶ τὸν κόσμον τοῦ προσώπου αὐτῶν, 20 καὶ τὴν σύνθεσιν τοῦ κόσμου τῆς δόξης αὐτῶν, καὶ τοὺς χλιδῶνας καὶ τὰ ψέλια καὶ τὸ ἐμπλόκιον καὶ τὰ περιδέξια καὶ τοὺς δακτυλίους καὶ τὰ ἐνώτια, 21 καὶ τὰ περιπόρφυρα καὶ τὰ μεσοπόρφυρα,

…with the conclusion to the sentence coming on the following Monday.

See here for more resources and links to texts for Greek Isaiah. Readings from week 1 are here, from week 2 are here.

Devotions on the Greek New Testament: one day left to enter giveaway

Devotions GNT

There is still time to enter my giveaway for Zondervan’s new resource, Devotions on the Greek New Testament.

If you want to check out the book before you decide to enter, my review of it is here.

To enter the giveaway, go here.

Free book giveaway: Devotions on the Greek New Testament

Devotions GNTYesterday I reviewed Zondervan’s new resource, Devotions on the Greek New Testament.

I have an extra copy to give away (not my review copy). I recommend this volume, for either you or the Greek language-lover in your life.

To enter the giveaway, simply comment on this blog post and say why it is you would want to win a copy. I will accept entries through next Monday afternoon, December 17, with 3pm EST being the cutoff.

Then if you link to this post on your Facebook, Twitter, blog, etc., come back here to tell me in the comments section that you did, and you’ll receive a second entry. I will announce the winner just before 5pm EST Monday.

If you want to check out the book before you decide to enter, my review of it is here.

Which came first, Isaiah or Micah? Comparing Isaiah 2:2-4 with Micah 4:1-3

Isaiah Micah

Isaiah 2:2-4 shares much in common with Micah 4:1-3. But who quoted whom?

Isaiah and Micah both prophesied in the 8th century B.C. Their prophetic oracles were delivered in Hebrew, and the Greek below is translated from that. But because I’m doing Greek Isaiah in a Year right now, I’ll confine my comments to the Greek text. Of course a more thorough examination of these two passages needs to consider the Hebrew, too.

Isaiah is in black and on top below. Micah is in red and on bottom.

ὅτι  ἔσται ἐν    ταῖς ἐσχάταις ἡμέραις   ἐμφανὲς τὸ ὄρος κυρίου,
καὶ ἔσται ἐπ᾽   ἐσχάτων τῶν ἡμερῶν   ἐμφανὲς τὸ ὄρος τοῦ κυρίου,

καὶ ὁ οἶκος τοῦ θεοῦ ἐπ᾽ ἄκρων τῶν ὀρέων,
ἕτοιμον ἐπὶ τὰς κορυφὰς             τῶν ὀρέων,

καὶ ὑψωθήσεται         ὑπεράνω τῶν βουνῶν.
καὶ μετεωρισθήσεται ὑπεράνω τῶν βουνῶν·

καὶ ἥξουσιν ἐπ᾽ αὐτὸ πάντα τὰ ἔθνη.
καὶ σπεύσουσιν πρὸς αὐτὸ λαοί,

καὶ πορεύσονται ἔθνη πολλὰ, καὶ ἐροῦσιν,
καὶ πορεύσονται ἔθνη πολλὰ  καὶ ἐροῦσιν,

δεῦτε καὶ ἀναβῶμεν εἰς τὸ ὄρος κυρίου,
δεῦτε,      ἀναβῶμεν εἰς τὸ ὄρος κυρίου,

καὶ εἰς τὸν οἶκον τοῦ θεοῦ Ιακωβ, καὶ ἀναγγελεῖ ἡμῖν τὴν ὁδὸν αὐτοῦ,
καὶ εἰς τὸν οἶκον τοῦ θεοῦ Ιακωβ· καὶ δείξουσιν ἡμῖν τὴν ὁδὸν αὐτοῦ,

καὶ πορευσόμεθα ἐν αὐτῇ·
καὶ πορευσόμεθα ἐν ταῖς τρίβοις αὐτοῦ·

ἐκ γὰρ Σιων ἐξελεύσεται νόμος, καὶ λόγος κυρίου ἐξ Ιερουσαλημ
ὅτι ἐκ  Σιων ἐξελεύσεται νόμος, καὶ λόγος κυρίου ἐξ Ιερουσαλημ.

καὶ κρινεῖ ἀνὰ μέσον τῶν ἐθνῶν,
καὶ κρινεῖ ἀνὰ μέσον λαῶν πολλῶν,

καὶ ἐλέγξει λαὸν πολύν·
καὶ ἐξελέγξει ἔθνη ἰσχυρὰ ἕως εἰς γῆν μακράν·

καὶ συγκόψουσιν    τὰς μαχαίρας αὐτῶν εἰς ἄροτρα,
καὶ κατακόψουσιν τὰς ῥομφαίας αὐτῶν εἰς ἄροτρα,

καὶ τὰς ζιβύνας αὐτῶν εἰς δρέπανα·
καὶ τὰ δόρατα   αὐτῶν εἰς δρέπανα,

καὶ οὐ λήμψεται ἔτι     ἔθνος ἐπ᾽ ἔθνος μάχαιραν,
καὶ οὐκέτι μὴ ἀντάρῃ ἔθνος ἐπ᾽ ἔθνος ῥομφαίαν,

καὶ οὐ        μὴ μάθωσιν ἔτι πολεμεῖν.
καὶ οὐκέτι μὴ μάθωσιν πολεμεῖν.

The Isaiah and Micah passages are similar thus:

  • The content is virtually the same; this is clearly the same prophetic oracle
  • Both use parataxis (lots of καὶ to conjoin clauses), as was common in the Greek OT
  • Whole phrases are identical (e.g., καὶ πορεύσονται ἔθνη πολλὰ  καὶ ἐροῦσιν…)
  • The general ordering of phrases/concepts and the flow of the oracle is the same in each

The Isaiah and Micah passages differ thus:

  • Preceding this passage in Isaiah (actually part of the same passage in Isaiah, though not reprinted above) is a superscription. Isaiah 2:1 says, Ὁ λόγος ὁ γενόμενος παρὰ κυρίου πρὸς Ησαιαν υἱὸν Αμως περὶ τῆς Ιουδαίας καὶ περὶ Ιερουσαλημ (“The word which came from the Lord to Isaiah, son of Amos, concerning Judah and Jerusalem”)
  • (Micah lacks any such superscription)
  • There is minor variation in the prepositions; e.g., Micah has ἐπ᾽ ἐσχάτων τῶν ἡμερῶν where Isaiah has ἐν ταῖς ἐσχάταις ἡμέραις
  • Different synonyms are used for the same idea; e.g., “swords” in Micah is ῥομφαίας but in Isaiah is μαχαίρας. And μετεωρισθήσεται in Micah is ὑψωθήσεται in Isaiah
  • Isaiah has the emphatic πάντα τὰ ἔθνη in 2:2 (though this just follows the Hebrew, where this is not in the Hebrew in Micah)
  • Other than this phrase, Micah seems more expansive
  • What follows/concludes the oracle is different in each

If Micah is original, the changes between the two texts could just be stylistic and poetic variation. One author I read on this passage suggests that inverted quotations (e.g., the variations between λαός and ἔθνος) are deliberate and purposely show that a passage at hand is being quoted. If this oracle originates with Micah, then perhaps Isaiah 2:5 differs so much from Micah 4:4-7 because Isaiah used just what he needed, then made the application in his own way with, “And now, house of Jacob, let us walk in the light of the Lord.”

But if this is true, then why Isaiah 2:1? I’m not the first to notice this, but couldn’t “The word of the Lord which came to Isaiah” be perceived as Isaiah claiming the oracle as originally his own?

In the end it’s impossible to be sure. My best guess is that this is some kind of shared liturgical material that the people would have been familiar with–not just a once-delivered oracle. Each prophet used it, I suspect, for his own purposes, as God guided. Where or with whom did the oracle originate? As Origen said regarding the author of the book of Hebrews… God only knows!

Devotions on the Greek New Testament, reviewed

Devotions GNT

I used to think it was just a scare tactic when professors of biblical languages said, “Use your Greek! Don’t let your Hebrew get rusty, or it will be gone forever!”

They were, of course, right. For various reasons I had to have a bit of lag time between Hebrew I and Hebrew II, and quite a bit fell by the wayside then. I find myself highly motivated now to keep reading Greek and Hebrew, several years in to each language.

The key question is–when? How do I find time to do that? I’m a husband, father of three kids age five and under, work full-time, take classes, and try to have some semblance of a social life.

So I try to work smarter, not harder. I take my Hebrew and Greek Bible to church with me and follow along in it–and let me here publicly apologize to my wife for asking her to carry it in her purse for me. (Bible software in church still seems a bit tacky to me.) And I try to do my personal Bible reading/devotions in another language whenever possible. For example, I’m having a blast with Greek Isaiah in a Year.

For people like me who want to keep and improve their languages, I think that sort of integration is vital. Learning Greek and Hebrew can’t be just rote study time with piles of vocabulary cards and pages of sentence diagrams. Especially for those who want to improve them, languages need to become, I think, part of life, and part of one’s regular reading and worshiping patterns.

Enter Zondervan’s Devotions on the Greek New Testament. The book fills a gap for ongoing language study that not many other resources meet, at least not in this way. It contains “52 reflections to inspire and instruct,” offered by scholars like Scot McKnight, Lynn H. Cohick, Roy E. Ciampa, Linda Belleville, Constantine R. Campbell, and more.

Readers of this blog will not be shocked that I agree with the doxological focus this volume has:

The need to know why you are studying Greek, particularly in relation to the ultimate purpose of strengthening your walk with the Lord, never fades into the background.

Each devotion is a couple of pages long, beginning with a block of untranslated Greek text and followed by English commentary on the text. The 52 reflections could be spread out over the course of a year for one a week. (Those who want to do regular Greek devotions, however, might go through the book more quickly.)

There are 28 male authors and 3 female authors, which as out-of-balance as that may sound, is actually more diverse (sadly) than many resources like this. The variety of authors, perspectives, and approaches makes Devotions on the GNT rich. The reflections are listed in canonical order, with every NT book represented except for 2 and 3 John.

The book succeeds in its effort to “instruct.” Some devotions focus on single words or phrases from the Greek text (Ciampa has a great clarifying devotion on Joseph’s righteousness in Matthew 1:19, teasing out δίκαιος ὢν in the text). Dean Deppe unpacks participles and main verbs (or shall we say, parses participles and primary predicates?) in Mark 5:25-27 to unearth more of what Mark and Jesus are up to. J.R. Dodson offers a fantastic literary analysis and sentence flow (which is presented well on the page) to ask how well the reader is doing embracing the freedom the Gospel brings.

Devotions on the GNT does “inspire,” too, and I’m encouraged that this resource exists for students of the Greek Bible like myself. However, at times I found the application sections to be a bit shorter than I’d have hoped (sometimes just a sentence or two). The reader may be perfectly capable of making the application herself or himself, but more could have been offered here.

The only other similar resource of which I’m aware is More Light on the Path (Baker, 1999). That devotional has both Hebrew and Greek, with uncommon vocabulary and parsings footnoted. But Devotions on the GNT goes more in-depth with the passage it treats, making it suitable as a true “devotional.”

After reading a given reflection, I do generally feel instructed and inspired: I feel that I’ve worked at my Greek for the day and have something to take with me. And it takes less than five minutes to work carefully through a reflection.

You can find Devotions on the Greek New Testament at Amazon or at Zondervan. In both places you can look inside the book.

I hope Zondervan publishes a corresponding Hebrew volume, and it would be a dream to see a Septuagint Greek devotional, too! Devotions on the Greek New Testament constitutes yet another step forward for language-learning students.

And keep an eye on this here blog. Within the next couple days, I’ll have a giveaway contest with an additional copy I’ve received of this book. (Update: go here for the giveaway.)

(I am thankful to Zondervan for the free review copy of this book, which was sent to me with the understanding that I would then write an unbiased review.)

Greek Isaiah in a Year, Week 2=Isaiah 1:26-2:15 (with text)

Isaiah 2:1-2

We had an active set of discussions during the first week of Greek Isaiah in a Year. We’re now up to 163 members in the Facebook group, which anyone can still join. A few folks have blogged about their reading, too (links forthcoming). Scroll through the Facebook group to see the kinds of things we’re talking about. Lots of great questions and comments already.

Tomorrow (Monday) begins week 2. Below is the schedule and text for the week, using again R.R. Ottley’s Book of Isaiah According to the Septuagint. (Find Ottley here on Amazon, here in Logos, and here as a free, downloadable pdf, since it’s public domain.)

Note that this week has a light day, with just two verses on Tuesday.

Monday, December 10: Isaiah 1:26-31

26 καὶ ἐπιστήσω τοὺς κριτάς σου ὡς τὸ πρότερον, καὶ τοὺς συμβούλους σου ὡς τὸ ἀπʼ ἀρχῆς· καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα κληθήσῃ Πόλις δικαιοσύνης, μητρόπολις πιστὴ Σιών. 27 μετὰ γὰρ κρίματος σωθήσεται ἡ αἰχμαλωσία αὐτῆς καὶ μετὰ ἐλεημοσύνης. 28 καὶ συντριβήσονται οἱ ἄνομοι καὶ οἱ ἁμαρτωλοὶ ἅμα, καὶ οἱ ἐγκαταλιπόντες τὸν κύριον συντελεσθήσονται· 29 διότι καταισχυνθήσονται ἐπὶ τοῖς εἰδώλοις αὐτῶν ἃ αὐτοὶ ἠβούλοντο, καὶ ἐπαισχυνθήσονται ἐπὶ τοῖς κήποις αὐτῶν ἃ ἐπεθύμησαν. 30 ἔσονται γὰρ ὡς τερέβινθος ἀποβεβληκυῖα τὰ φύλλα, καὶ ὡς παράδεισος ὕδωρ μὴ ἔχων· 31 καὶ ἔσται ἡ ἰσχὺς αὐτῶν ὡς καλάμη στιππύου, καὶ αἱ ἐργασίαι αὐτῶν ὡς σπινθῆρες πυρός, καὶ κατακαυθήσονται οἱ ἄνομοι καὶ οἱ ἁμαρτωλοὶ ἅμα, καὶ οὐκ ἔσται ὁ σβέσων.

Tuesday, December 11: Isaiah 2:1-2

2 1 Ὁ λόγος ὁ γενόμενος παρὰ Κυρίου πρὸς Ἠσαίαν υἱὸν Ἀμὼς περὶ τῆς Ἰουδαίας καὶ περὶ Ἰερουσαλήμ.

2 Ὅτι ἔσται ἐν ταῖς ἐσχάταις ἡμέραις ἐμφανὲς τὸ ὄρος τοῦ Κυρίου, καὶ ὁ οἶκος τοῦ θεοῦ ἐπʼ ἄκρων τῶν ὀρέων, καὶ ὑψωθήσεται ὑπεράνω τῶν βουνῶν, καὶ ἥξουσιν ἐπʼ αὐτὸ πάντα τὰ ἔθνη.

Wednesday, December 12: Isaiah 2:3-5

3 καὶ πορεύσονται ἔθνη πολλὰ καὶ ἐροῦσιν Δεῦτε ἀναβῶμεν εἰς τὸ ὄρος τοῦ Κυρίου καὶ εἰς τὸν οἶκον τοῦ θεοῦ Ἰακώβ, καὶ ἀναγγελεῖ ἡμῖν τὴν ὁδὸν αὐτοῦ, καὶ πορευσόμεθα ἐν αὐτῇ. ἐκ γὰρ Σειὼν ἐξελεύσεται νόμος, καὶ λόγος Κυρίου ἐξ Ἰερουσαλήμ· 4 καὶ κρινεῖ ἀνὰ μέσον τῶν ἐθνῶν, καὶ ἐλέγξει λαὸν πολύν· καὶ συγκόψουσιν τὰς μαχαίρας αὐτῶν εἰς ἄροτρα καὶ τὰς ζιβύνας αὐτῶν εἰς δρέπανα, καὶ οὐ λήμψεται ἔτι ἔθνος ἐπʼ ἔθνος μάχαιραν, καὶ οὐ μὴ μάθωσιν ἔτι πολεμεῖν. 5 Καὶ νῦν, ὁ οἶκος τοῦ Ἰακώβ, δεῦτε πορευθῶμεν τῷ φωτὶ Κυρίου.

Thursday, December 13: Isaiah 2:6-10

6 ἀνῆκεν γὰρ τὸν λαὸν αὐτοῦ τὸν οἶκον τοῦ Ἰσραήλ· ὅτι ἐνεπλήσθη ὡς τὸ ἀπʼ ἀρχῆς ἡ χώρα αὐτῶν κληδονισμῶν, ὡς ἡ τῶν ἀλλοφύλων, καὶ τέκνα πολλὰ ἀλλόφυλα ἐγενήθη αὐτοῖς. 7 ἐνεπλήσθη γὰρ ἡ χώρα αὐτῶν ἀργυρίου καὶ χρυσίου, καὶ οὐκ ἦν ἀριθμὸς τῶν θησαυρῶν αὐτῶν· καὶ ἐνεπλήσθη ἡ γῆ αὐτῶν ἵππων, καὶ οὐκ ἦν ἀριθμὸς τῶν ἁρμάτων αὐτῶν· 8 καὶ ἐνεπλήσθη ἡ γῆ βδελυγμάτων τῶν ἔργων τῶν χειρῶν αὐτῶν, καὶ προσεκύνησαν οἷς ἐποίησαν οἱ δάκτυλοι αὐτῶν· 9 καὶ ἔκυψεν ἄνθρωπος καὶ ἐταπεινώθη ἀνήρ, καὶ οὐ μὴ ἀνήσω αὐτούς. 10 καὶ νῦν εἰσέλθατε εἰς τὰς πέτρας καὶ κρύπτεσθε εἰς τὴν γῆν ἀπὸ προσώπου τοῦ φόβου Κυρίου καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς δόξης τῆς ἰσχύος αὐτοῦ, ὅταν ἀναστῇ θραῦσαι τὴν γῆν.

Friday, December 14: Isaiah 2:11-15

11 οἱ γὰρ ὀφθαλμοὶ Κυρίου ὑψηλοί, ὁ δὲ ἄνθρωπος ταπεινός· καὶ ταπεινωθήσεται τὸ ὕψος τῶν ἀνθρώπων, καὶ ὑψωθήσεται Κύριος μόνος ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ. 12 ἡμέρα γὰρ Κυρίου σαβαὼθ ἐπὶ πάντα ὑβριστὴν καὶ ὑπερήφανον καὶ ἐπὶ πάντα ὑψηλὸν καὶ μετέωρον, καὶ ταπεινωθήσονται, 13 καὶ ἐπὶ πᾶσαν κέδρον τοῦ Λιβάνου τῶν ὑψηλῶν καὶ μετεώρων, καὶ ἐπὶ πᾶν δένδρον βαλάνου Βασάν, 14 καὶ ἐπὶ πᾶν ὄρος, καὶ ἐπὶ πάντα βουνὸν ὑψηλόν, 15 καὶ ἐπὶ πάντα πύργον ὑψηλόν, καὶ ἐπὶ πᾶν τεῖχος ὑψηλόν,

And… we’ll have to wait for that sentence in 2:15 to finish next week.

See here for more resources and links to texts for Greek Isaiah. Readings from week 1 are here.

Through the New Testament in a Year: 2013 Reading Plan

bible with coffeeIf you’re looking for a Bible reading plan for 2013, here’s a simple one (pdf) that takes you through the New Testament six days a week, at the rate of about a chapter a day. Logos 5 generated the reading plan for me.

I am going to get as far as I can reading the New Testament in 2013 in Greek (see here), though it may be enough for me to stay with Greek Isaiah in a Year. (More than 150 people have already joined me in the latter.)