Books by James B Jordan

The Theopolis Liturgy and Psalter presents a number of liturgical materials used by the Theopolis Institute in Birmingham, Alabama for its courses and fellows programs. Containing materials for a Matins, Sext, and Vespers service, the Theopolis Liturgy and Psalter provides a teaching liturgy to help students develop a taste for liturgical worship.The Theopolis Liturgy and Psalter also contains a selection of Psalms translated by James B. Jordan with numerous settings arranged by Jordan as well as part of an effort to train God's people to chant the Psalms, or to sing them in a manner as close as possible to the text God provided.The Theopolis Liturgy and Psalter is mostly the work of James B. Jordan with an introduction by Theopolis Institute President Peter J. Leithart, a Primer on Liturgy by Jeffrey J. Meyers, and an Introduction to the Psalter by James B. Jordan.This text is a First Edition.

In this study, James Jordan argues why the Persian kings named Darius, Ahasuerus, and Artaxerxes in the books of Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther are one and the same. This is not a new understanding. Many recent commentators are so certain that Ahasuerus is the king the Greeks called Xerxes and that Artaxerxes is Artaxerxes Longimanus. James Jordan, however, demonstrates that the common identifications of these kings is problematic and that understanding their common identity sheds considerable light on our understanding of redemptive history.Excerpt from Darius, Artaxerxes, and Ahasuerus in the Bible:“If my thesis is correct, then several things emerge. First, it becomes clear that there was no ‘decree to rebuild Jerusalem’ issued by Artaxerxes Longimanus, because that later Artaxerxes is not the Artaxerxes (Darius) of Nehemiah. Thus, the ‘word’ spoken of in Daniel 9:25 must be the decree of Cyrus. Second, it becomes clear that, just as Cyrus was a new David, so Darius is a new Solomon. It is Darius who builds the Temple, Darius-Artaxerxes who builds Jerusalem, and Darius-Ahasuerus who marries a Jewish bride and protects the Jewish people, which creates a broad analogy between the books of Esther and Song of Solomon. Third, assuming for a moment that Chronicles-Ezra-Nehemiah were designed as one book with one story, then the plan of that large book becomes clear: the progression from David to Solomon to his wayward successors is rehearsed as a typological foundation for the new historical progression from Cyrus to Darius to their wayward successors in both empire and land.”

Biblical rituals are not strange practices or obscure formalities but correspond to the stages of human life, revealing God's design for how we can emulate His ways. In From Bread to Wine: Creation, Worship, and Christian Maturity, James B. Jordan explores how sin disrupts the rhythms of human life and how biblical rituals restore us to our place in God's historical plan with special emphasis on the motifs of bread and wine throughout the Scriptures. In the Bible, bread is priestly while wine is kingly and prophetic. Bread comes first and wine later. You eat bread in the morning and drink wine at night. Bread is suitable for children while wine is for adults. Bread is made quickly, but wine takes much longer to ferment and mature.  The entire Old Creation, the childhood of humanity (Galatians 4), is the time of bread, while the New Covenant, our maturity in Christ, is the time of bread and wine. Between the two comes the breaking of the bread, the death of Jesus Christ.

The Great Commission involves not merely witnessing to the nations but discipling them. God’s purpose is to fill the earth with His glory, bringing about a Christianized world, where each nation follows King Jesus. God will accomplish this through the faithful witness of His Church as He blesses the preaching of the gospel and the teaching of His Word. By the blessing of His Spirit, a true unity of confession will be established among all the nations to the end that every nation and language will praise Him (Rev. 7:9). In Christendom and the Nations James B. Jordan describes the foundational principles of Christian nations, drawing out the teachings of Scripture in regard to foreign policy, borders, immigration, and other foundational issues – all of which play a central role in bringing us closer to the day when "the earth is filled with the knowledge and glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea."