The tension: Deuteronomy 7:9, 11:1, 12:1, and Psalm 119:151-160 declare the commandments and statutes binding 'forever,' 'always,' and 'to a thousand generations.' Jesus in…
The tension: Deuteronomy 20:19 prohibits destroying fruit trees during a siege: 'thou shalt not destroy the trees thereof by forcing an axe against them.' 2 Kings 3:19 has…
The tension: Deuteronomy 23:7 forbids Israel from despising the Edomite because he is a brother, but later texts — 2 Kings 14, Ezekiel 25, and the entire book of Obadiah —…
The tension: Deuteronomy 24:1-2 explicitly permits a divorced woman to become another man's wife, but Luke 16:18 has Jesus declaring that anyone who marries a divorced woma…
The tension: Deuteronomy 6:16 issues a blanket prohibition — 'Ye shall not tempt the LORD your God' — quoted approvingly by Jesus at Matthew 4:7 and Luke 4:12.
The tension: Deuteronomy 23:3 bars Moabites from the assembly of Yahweh to the tenth generation, and Ezra 9-10 commands the forced divorce of foreign wives including Moabit…
The tension: 2 Kings 22:19 and the parallel 2 Chronicles 34:27 record God praising Josiah for rending his clothes; Ecclesiastes 3:7 lists a "time to rend." Joel 2:13 calls…
The tension: Paul in 1 Corinthians 1:21, 3:18, and 4:10 actively recommends becoming a fool — God saves through the foolishness of preaching, and Paul calls himself and his…
The tension: Psalm 14:1 and 53:1 — same text, double-edited — open with "the fool has said in his heart, there is no God." Calling someone a fool there is fine; the Psalmis…
The tension: Paul's hymn to love in 1 Corinthians 13:7 says love 'believes all things,' but Proverbs 14:15, Proverbs 26:25, 1 Thessalonians 5:21, and 1 John 4:1 issue blank…
The tension: Leviticus 19:26 and Deuteronomy 18:10-12 ban divination and observing 'times' — language traditionally read to include astrology — and call practitioners an ab…
The tension: Matthew 5:16 commands disciples to let their light shine before others *hopōs idōsin hymōn ta kala erga* — 'so that they may see your good works' — and 1 Peter…
The tension: Deuteronomy 4:2 forbids adding to the commandments: *lōʾ tōsipû ʿal-haddābār ʾăšer ʾānōkî mĕṣawweh ʾetkem* — 'you shall not add to the word which I command you…
The tension: Deuteronomy 24:1-2 permits divorce for any 'uncleanness' (Hebrew *ʿerwat dābār*) — historically read liberally by the school of Hillel as covering almost any c…
The tension: The Pentateuchal legal codes prescribe death by stoning, burning, or general execution for an enormous range of offenses: murder (Gen 9:6; Num 35:30), striking…
