Every once in a while, we may hear a Chinese prayer that says something along the lines of “孩子禱告” or “孩子在袮面前” which can confuse some people. Who are these 孩子? Whose 孩子 are they? On that note, is that how you write “孩”? (Sorry, happens when I stare at something for too long.) TL;DR, “孩子” means “I”, and “孩子們”…
Author: yubo.du
Who Is to Judge
Judges 士師記 {shi4-shi1-ji4}Old Testament – Historical Books Egyptians had pharaohs, Babylonians had kings, the United States has presidents, and Canada its prime ministers. For a period of turmoil in Israel’s history, the people had none of those. Instead, Judges ruled their lands. It’s natural to wonder why they were called Judges in the first place, why Judges led…
Beatitudes 八福
The Gospel Books in the New Testament have no shortage of Jesus’s teachings. To all Christ’s followers, they are the treasure troves of knowledge and guidance on how to be more like Him. Among them, certain sayings stand out like bundles of powerful and succinct sermons. Beatitudes [bee-A-ti-tyoodz] 天國八福 {tian1-guo2-ba1-fu2} from Matthew 5:3-12 is one of them. The Chinese name makes…
Mind Game
In a way, interpretation is a game of the mind. Obviously, the associated tasks, listening, memorizing, translating, organizing, and speaking, all take place in our heads. What isn’t obvious is that the mind plays a bigger role outside the technical aspects to facilitate quality and consistent interpretation. Anyone who tries interpretation for long enough can probably relate. In…
Haggai
哈該書 {ha1-gai1-shu1}Old Testament – Minor Prophets Trust your instinct on how to pronounce his name: [HA-gahy]. Haggai is a very short Book (2 chapters only) with a laser-focused purpose: directing the Israelites to resume the rebuilding of the 2nd Temple. Remember when King Cyrus of Persia sent the Israelite exiles back to rebuild the temple, then King Artaxerxes stopped…
Philistines 非利士人
Israel had its fair share of enemies over its ancient existence, ranging from localized tribal forces to vast empires. None quite compared to the Philistines. It wasn’t because the Philistines were the strongest, certainly no stronger than the Babylonians. Instead, they are particularly fresh on our minds due to their long history of entanglement, good and…
1/2 Corinthians
哥林多前/後書New Testament – Epistles 1 and 2 Corinthians [kuh-RIN-thee-uhnz] were Paul’s two letters addressed to the church in the city of Corinth [KO-rinth]. Apostle Paul first visited Corinth on his way to preach the Gospel to Macedonia. During his visit, God advised him to lengthen his stay in Corinth, so Paul spent a year and a half…
Story Time
If sermon interpretation was all about interpretation, our job would be much simpler, and this training would have been much shorter. Thankfully, it’s not, which is precisely why it’s much more interesting, rewarding, and exhilarating as we endeavor to master this craft. A significant component of our interpretation hinges on our knowledge of the Bible….
A Leader Without a Crown
Keeping up with the topic of leaders, let’s look at one without a crown or a kingdom. His name is Zerubbabel [zuh-ROO-buh-buhl] 所羅巴伯 {suo3-luo2-ba1-bo2}, son of Shealtiel. Zeruba-what, you ask? Granted, he wasn’t listed as a king of Israel or Judah or named as one of the prophets. Nevertheless, he was a key figure in the history of Israel and God’s…
Persian Empire 波斯帝國
When the Bible mentions Persia, it refers to the Achaemenid [uh-KEE-muh-nid] Empire 阿契美尼德帝國 {a1-qi4-mei3-ni2-de2-di4-guo2}, a.k.a Medo-Persian Empire 瑪代波斯帝國 {mai3-dai4-bo1-si1-di4-guo2} (the latter emphasizing the two peoples that constitute the empire, Medes and Persians. It’s complicated since Persia subsumed Media first, then Lydia, then Babylon, so let’s just stick to Persia). Persia took over all the dominions of Babylon, including the Hebrew exiles,…