Book Review: Keeping the 10 Commandments
[Trivia: Here are some questions about new entries in the Oxford English Dictionary (Sep 2024 update)
New is this compound adjective as a distinct term, relating to "esp. the region including Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda"
R2-D2 might be excited by this new entry, denoting either a "low-pitched…sound" or "a gentle tap or touch, esp. on a … nose"
From film, "“An abrupt, jarring, or unexpected transition from one shot or scene to another" (Cars 2 was criticized for having an especially bad one towards the end)
This alliterative term, which is also used of people: “Of a company or organization: a defining capability or advantage”
This alliterative term: “A firearm that is not registered or trackable; esp. one that has been assembled … using 3D printing.”
This 2-word term as a noun or adjective describing “amateur or recreational sports…esp. with an emphasis on socializing and informality.”
There's a new entry for this 2-word gerund, a forward-thinking act of what happens after you pass on
Only in 2024 did this ordinal phrase get an entry, "Used originally … as the type of something unnecessary, unwanted, or useless. In later use…” it’s given a more interpersonal meaning
]
The late J. I. Packer’s Keeping the 10 Commandments (2007) is a readable and succinct exploration of the titular Exodus 20 material.
Packer, who served as general editor of the ESV Bible, has a formidable knowledge base and packages a good amount of insight per topic in this slender, 127-page volume. The book charts an accessible path, between a mere recitation of the 10 laws and something academic and overwhelming that no casual reader would ever get through. He examines the familiar, simple instructions and introduces considerations from a variety of different angles, although sometimes raising topics bigger than can be satisfyingly covered in the space allotted in a hit-and-run.
For instance, when discussing “You shall not murder” Packer distinguishes the “malicious and unlawful killing” it prohibits from acts of war or execution, grounds it philosophically in the manner in which life is God’s gift and man bears His image, traces its ramification into the areas of abortion, suicide, and euthanasia, and emphasizes the perspective Jesus highlights about the “rage and hatred in the normal human heart.” It’s a pretty good survey. It also includes a half-baked condemnation of interrogation and torture (and on behalf of a government), which is less satisfying.
The book’s biggest shortcoming, though, is the style’s strenuous and unnecessary efforts to wring poetry out of its prose. The worst offenders are the forced alliterations, and they seem to get worse (or maybe patience just wears thin) as the book goes on; the use of exclamation points and rhetorical questions are a little unrestrained, also.
The book’s chapters are also broken up, More Than a Carpenter-style, with review questions, obviously with an eye towards an educational context. These are fine, although they lean too heavily in the direction of content recall that solicits what’s literally in the text (which I imagine are the easier types of questions for a third party to write) rather than real jumping-off questions.
Overall, this is a fine book. It would do serviceably as a plank in a middle school curriculum, or it would be a good read if the subject is one you’ve never scrutinized. I wouldn’t be surprised to discover a better primer on the subject, but I don’t feel the need to seek out an improvement on this one, either.
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Answer:
New is this compound adjective as a distinct term, relating to "esp. the region including Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda": East African
R2-D2 might be excited by this new entry, denoting either a "low-pitched…sound" or "a gentle tap or touch, esp. on a … nose": Boop
From film, "“An abrupt, jarring, or unexpected transition from one shot or scene to another" (Cars 2 was criticized for having an especially bad one towards the end): Smash cut
This alliterative term, which is also used of people: “Of a company or organization: a defining capability or advantage”: Core competency
This alliterative term: “A firearm that is not registered or trackable; esp. one that has been assembled … using 3D printing.”: Ghost gun
This 2-word term as a noun or adjective: “An amateur or recreational sports league, esp. one with an emphasis on socializing and informality.”: Beer league
There's a new entry for this 2-word gerund, a forward-thinking act of what happens after you pass on: Estate planning
Only in 2024 did this ordinal phrase get an entry, "Used originally … as the type of something unnecessary, unwanted, or useless. In later use…” it’s given a more interpersonal meaning: Third wheel