Category Archives: idioms

The double-dyed villains of the Apocrypha

In a previous post, I noted the use of “triple-dyed villain” (NEB) and “double-dyed villain” (REB) to describe the character of Haman in the Greek version of the book of Esther: We find, however, that the Jews whom this double-dyed villain had consigned to extinction are no evildoers; on the contrary, they order their lives by [...]
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Cunning punning in Genesis 3

The value of a historical-critical study Bible does show itself from time to time. I was reading through the early chapters of Genesis, looking for more “once upon a time…” campfire stories, when I happened upon the study notes in my REB Study Bible for Genesis 3:1: 3.1: Serpent: an ancient extrabiblical story tells how a [...]
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I peed my pants!

Returning to Kevin Sam’s list of interesting idioms in the NEB, I wanted to take a closer look at Ezekiel 21.7, which the NEB translates as: When they ask you why you are groaning, say to them, ‘I groan at the thing I have heard; when it comes, all hearts melt, all courage fails, all hands [...]
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  • Words wither and blogs fade away…

    Forgive me if you’ve heard this song before, but I've decided to stop blogging at He is Sufficient. I truly appreciate all of the wit, wisdom and words of faith that you have shared with me over the past few years. I wish you well in all of your endeavors, whatever they may be and wherever they may lead you. “God is sufficient for the needs of His people”. Amen!