The Most Read Crossway Articles from 2023

The Top Ten Most Read Articles This Year

Review below some of this year’s most popular articles, gain insight on some tough passages in the Bible, and read great content from authors such as John Piper, Kevin DeYoung, and Rosaria Butterfield on subjects like heaven and hell, failing at quiet time, gender identity, and the second coming of Christ.

10. 5 Misconceptions about Heaven and Hell (and 5 Truths)
Jon Nielson

Because there is so much confusion and incorrect teaching about both heaven and hell, Jon Nielson digs into some of the most common false beliefs about both places. As always, we want to counter false ideas about these doctrines with the truth of the Bible.

9. Jesus Said More about Hell Than Anyone in the Bible
John Piper

The word wrath is important for understanding what Jesus meant by hell. Hell is not simply the natural consequence of rejecting God. Some people say this in order to reject the thought that God sends people there. They say that people send themselves there. That is true. People make choices that lead to hell. But it is not the whole truth.

8. 5 Myths about Gender Identity
Samuel D. Ferguson

While we should be careful not to reduce gender to cultural stereotypes, we must realize that uprooting gender from biology effectively kills it. If gender can be anything, it ends up being nothing. The Bible, however, teaches that God created two sexes, “male and female he created them," and that gender identity is rooted in biological sex.

7. What Does Psalm 23:1 Mean?
David Gibson

The beauty of Psalm 23 is that it is so simple and clear that it almost needs no interpretation or exposition. But when you unload the metaphor of the Lord as our shepherd within the Psalm then the riches of all its verses shine all the brighter.

6. Why Did Jesus Curse a Fig Tree?
Dan Doriani

Jesus is returning to Jerusalem. He is hungry, sees a fig tree in leaf, inspects it, finds nothing but leaves, and curses it, saying, “May no fruit ever come from you again!” Surprisingly, the tree withers immediately. Outside of this instance, Jesus’s miracles bring healing and grace. Why did he react to this fig tree in this way?

5. Why Did Ruth Enter Boaz’s Tent in the Middle of the Night?
Mary Wilson Hannah

Naomi’s plan initiates this scene’s events. Ruth must brave the darkness by going stealthily down to the threshing floor and remain hidden until the opportune time. After Boaz has eaten and gone to bed, she is to enter his tent, lift the blanket at his feet and lie down, and wait for him to wake. Why does she do this?

4. The Hidden Cancer in Our Churches
Michael Reeves

What is the most urgent need of the church today? Better leadership? Better training? Healthier giving? Orthodoxy? Moral integrity? Each of these are undoubtedly needs, but underneath them all lies something even more vital.

3. How a Husband Shows Honor to His Wife as the “Weaker Vessel”
Chad and Emily Van Dixhoorn

Sadly, we’ve all seen men who intimidate, humiliate, neglect, control, and criticize their wives because of what they see as weakness. Peter calls husbands in particular to honor their wives in their weakness. So let us comment on what that weakness might be, how a husband should treat his wife, and why.

2. 4 Points of Evidence for the Resurrection
Neil Shenvi

For two thousand years, Christians have insisted that Jesus rose physically from the dead on the Sunday after his crucifixion. The historicity of the resurrection is central to Christian theology because Jesus’s death and resurrection are both tied to our salvation. Neil Shenvi sketches an argument for the historicity of the resurrection that rests on four main points.

1. 5 Lies Our Culture Is Telling Us
Rosaria Butterfield

God calls us to live our Christian lives with courage, tell the truth, and fear God and not man. Rosaria Butterfield points out five lies our culture offers us regarding homosexuality, feminism, transgenderism, modesty, and being a biblical Christian.

ESV Expository Commentary

Three New Testament scholars offer passage-by-passage commentary through the narratives of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, explaining difficult doctrines, shedding light on overlooked sections, and making applications to life and ministry today. Part of the ESV Expository Commentary.