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👋 Good morning! Happy Hump Day to you and yours. In today's edition: Knicks win NBA Cup, Crawford retires from boxing, the parallels between Pete Golding and Steve Fisher, NFL power rankings, emailing with the Warriors owner, and more. Yahoo Sports AM is written by Kendall Baker and Jeff Tracy. Let's sports...   🚨 ICYMI HEADLINES 🥊 Bud Crawford retires: Terence "Bud" Crawford, 38, announced his surprise retirement from boxing on Tuesday. This comes just months after dethroning Canelo Álvarez to improve to a perfect 42-0 (31 KOs) and lay legitimate claim to the title of best boxer of his generation. 🏀 NBA expansion talk: The NBA has been flirting with expansion for years now, but Adam Silver says a decision is coming in 2026. He specifically threw out Seattle and Las Vegas as possibilities for new teams. ⚽️ FIFA slashes ticket prices: A week after fans responded with outrage over World Cup ticket prices, FIFA said it will provide each participating federation with a limited quantity of $60 tickets to each game to distribute to their fans. 🏈 ACC adds 9th game: The ACC is joining the other power conferences in moving to a nine-game conference schedule starting next year. The only caveat is that due to having an odd number of members (17), not every team will be able to play nine games each season. 🏒 Saban, the owner: Nick Saban has purchased a minority stake in the NHL's Nashville Predators. "Being involved in a sports team in Nashville has always been a goal," said the Hall of Fame football coach, who already owns multiple car dealerships in Tennessee's capital.   🏆 MID-SEASON CHAMPS KNICKS USE TEAM EFFORT TO WIN NBA CUP (Ethan Miller/Getty Images) The Knicks won the NBA Cup without a hero, and that should frighten the rest of the league. Game recap: Despite an 11-of-27 shooting night for Jalen Brunson and an injury that temporarily sidelined Karl-Anthony Towns, the Knicks erased a double-digit deficit to defeat the Spurs, 124-113, and win the third NBA Cup title. For a team that hasn't won the NBA Finals since 1973, that certainly means something. OG Anunoby posted a game-high 28 points. Tyler Kolek and Jordan Clarkson added double-digit points off the bench. Josh Hart kept doing Josh Hart things. Mitchell Robinson extended possession after possession with 10 offensive rebounds and 15 total boards… in 18 total minutes. What they're saying: "Without Tyler Kolek, OG Anunoby, Mitchell Robinson and Jordan Clarkson, we don't win this game," said Brunson while accepting NBA Cup MVP honors. From Yahoo Sports' Kelly Iko: New York can make a strong claim as the deepest, most talented team in the East — and perhaps the NBA as a whole. How many teams can match the sheer offensive brilliance and leadership of Brunson? The two-way skill set of Anunoby and Mikal Bridges? Towns' unicorn-like gravity? Hart's glue? Robinson's ability to generate second-chance points? Clarkson's instant scoring off the bench? This is why the Knicks should be feared. Brunson is the head of the snake, a likely MVP candidate and rightfully so. But take a stroll into Madison Square Garden and think that slowing him down is a surefire way to victory, and your mistakes haven't even begun. New venues coming soon? Las Vegas has hosted the first three NBA Cup Finals, but that could be changing. Adam Silver told the NBA on Prime pregame show that "some storied college locations" are under consideration to host future title games. My top 3, if that happens: Allen Fieldhouse (Kansas) Cameron Indoor Stadium (Duke) The Palestra (Penn) Which college arena would you like to see host the NBA Cup Finals?   🏈 COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF CAN PETE GOLDING BE THE STEVE FISHER OF FOOTBALL? Brent Musburger interviews Steve Fisher after the Wolverines won the 1989 national championship. (Focus on Sport/Getty Images) As Ole Miss prepares for the College Football Playoff, the Rebels will be hoping that the parallels with Michigan basketball don't end with the mid-season promotion of an assistant coach. From Yahoo Sports' Jeff Eisenberg: In March 1989, two days after Selection Sunday, Michigan men's basketball coach Bill Frieder made a major miscalculation: he incorrectly assumed that he could accept a job offer from another school yet still coach the Wolverines in the NCAA tournament. The morning after Frieder revealed that he intended to leave for Arizona State after the season, Michigan athletic director Bo Schembechler summoned Frieder's top assistant Steve Fisher to his office for a 7 a.m. meeting. When the 43-year-old assistant coach arrived, Schembechler didn't waste time with small talk or pleasantries. "Fisher, can you coach this team?" Fisher recalls Schembechler gruffly asking. "Because there's no way Bill Frieder's going to coach them." 36 years after Schembechler famously told Frieder not to bother showing up to the NCAA tournament, that banishment has gained newfound relevance. It's by far the closest historical precedent to the messy breakup that resulted in Ole Miss refusing to let Lane Kiffin coach the Rebels in the College Football Playoff after he spurned them for conference rival LSU. Golding looks on prior to the Rebels' game against Georgia in October. (Jeffrey Vest/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) As sixth-seeded Ole Miss prepares for its opening round matchup against 11th-seeded Tulane on Saturday, the Rebels will be hoping that the parallels with Michigan basketball don't end with the ill-timed coaching change. They'll try to emulate how the '89 Wolverines rallied around their anonymous new coach, embraced the role of jilted underdogs and stormed to their program's first — and still only — national championship. Can newly promoted Ole Miss head coach Pete Golding become the Steve Fisher of college football? Can Golding enter the College Football Playoff with zero wins as a head coach and then guide the Rebels to an improbable national title? Fisher will be watching with great interest from his home in Del Mar, California. "I wish [Golding] good luck," he said. "I hope he has a great run and I'll be following it closely."   🌎 THROUGH THE LENS THE WORLD IN PHOTOS (Stew Milne/Getty Images) 🇺🇸 Montgomery, Alabama — Jacksonville State beat Troy, 17-13, on Tuesday night to win the Salute to Veterans Bowl in a matchup of schools located just 162 miles apart. 3-for-3: Jacksonville State has played in a bowl game in each of its three seasons at the FBS level. Marshall is the only other team (1997-99) to appear in bowl games in each of its first three eligible seasons. (Jeff Pachoud/AFP via Getty Images) 🇫🇷 Courchevel, France — American skiing sensation Mikaela Shiffrin continued her unbeaten run to start the World Cup slalom campaign, winning the night event in the French Alps on Tuesday for her fourth victory in four tries this season. All-time leaders: This was Shiffrin's record 105th World Cup victory, 19 clear of second-place Ingemar Stenmark. On Friday, American Lindsey Vonn won her 83rd race, which ranks third. (Jan Kruger/FIFA via Getty Images) 🇶🇦 Doha, Qatar — Ballon d'Or winners Ousmane Dembélé (France, PSG) and Aitana Bonmatí (Spain, Barcelona) were named the best men's and women's players at FIFA's 10th annual awards ceremony. Best XI: Dembélé was one of six PSG players to make the Best Men's XI, while Bonmatí was one of seven members of the Spanish national team to make the Best Women's XI. (Clive Brunskill/Getty Images) 🇪🇸 Murcia, Spain — Carlos Alcaraz runs during his VO2 Max test as he trains for the 2026 Australian Open. VO2 max, explained: VO2 max is the maximum amount, or volume (V), of oxygen (O2) your body can use as a fuel source for exercise. Put simply, it's a gauge of how much hard work your body can do and is an objective way to tell how fit you are.   🏈 WEEK 16 NFL POWER RANKINGS (Hassan Ahmad/Yahoo Sports) With just three weeks left in the regular season, the NFL playoff picture — and overall hierarchy — is taking shape. Where does your team sit in our latest power rankings? Rising: No team had a bigger jump this week than the Ravens, who climbed four spots to No. 15 after blanking the Bengals to keep their playoff hopes alive. And though the Vikings may be eliminated, they still climbed three spots to No. 20 behind a vastly improved J.J. McCarthy. Falling: The Packers suffered the biggest fall, dropping four spots to No. 9 after not only losing their game, but more importantly losing Micah Parsons for the season (ACL). The No. 17 Cowboys, No. 23 Dolphins and No. 24 Bengals all dropped three spots after losses.   📺 VIEWING GUIDE WATCHLIST: WEDNESDAY, DEC. 17 The Red Wings won on Tuesday to take over sole possession of first place in the Atlantic. (Dave Reginek/NHLI via Getty Images) 🏒 NHL on TNT The first-place Red Wings host the Mammoth in the first leg of tonight's doubleheader (7:30pm ET), followed by the second-place Golden Knights hosting the Devils in the nightcap (10pm). 🏈 Bowl Games Bowl season continues tonight with two games: Old Dominion vs. USF in the Cure Bowl in Orlando (5pm, ESPN), and Louisiana vs. Delaware in the 68 Ventures Bowl in Mobile, Alabama (8:30pm, ESPN). More to watch: 🏀 NBA: Grizzlies at Timberwolves (8pm, NBA) … Minnesota (17-9) is sixth in the West and Memphis (12-14) is ninth. ⚽️ FIFA Intercontinental Cup: PSG vs. Flamengo (12pm, DAZN) … Qatar hosts the final for the second annual competition featuring each continent's title winner. ⚽️ Women's Champions League: Juventus vs. Man United (3pm, Paramount+) … One of nine games in the final matchday of the league phase. 🏈 JUCO: Hutchinson vs. Iowa Western (7pm, ESPNU) … The junior college national championship at West Texas A&M’s Bain-Schaeffer Buffalo Stadium.   🏈 MVP RACE NFL TRIVIA (Mallory Bielecki/Yahoo Sports) Matthew Stafford, 37, remains the betting favorite to win his first MVP, which would make him just the sixth player in NFL history to win the award at age 37 or later. Question: Can you name the other five? Hint: 1963, 2002, 2013, 2017, 2020, 2021. Answer at the bottom.   🏀 DIRECT LINE AN EMAIL FROM THE OWNER Warriors majority owner Joe Lacob, pictured in 2024. (Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images) A Warriors fan emailed team owner Joe Lacob on Sunday night, expressing his frustration about Golden State's poor start to the season. He didn't expect Lacob to respond two minutes later. The email: Warriors fan Justin Dutari found an email address that he thought belonged to Lacob and shot off a quick note with the subject line "Please read." He complained about Steph Curry needing to shoulder so much of the scoring load, said Jimmy Butler is playing out of position, and asked him to "please do something about this team." The owner's response: You can't be as frustrated as me. I am working on it. It's complicated. Style of play. Coaches desires regarding players. League trends. Jimmy [Butler] is not the problem.   Trivia answer: Tom Brady (40 years old in 2017); Aaron Rodgers (37 in 2020, 38 in 2021); Peyton Manning (37 in 2013); Rich Gannon (37 in 2002); Y.A. Tittle (37 in 1963)

CAIR-Florida files lawsuit against DeSantis after ‘terrorist’ designation TAMPA — The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil-rights organization, has filed a federal lawsuit challenging Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ executive order issued last week designating the group as a “terrorist organization.” CAIR is asking the court to block the executive order and declare it unconstitutional. https://floridaphoenix.com/2025/12/16/cair-florida-files-lawsuit-against-desantis-after-terrorist-designation/? ‘Sadly timed’: New bill would allow professors, TAs to open carry on campus Florida professors, university faculty, and teaching assistants could soon be able to openly carry firearms on campus, thanks to a sweeping new measure filed by a Republican lawmaker. https://floridaphoenix.com/2025/12/16/sadly-timed-new-bill-would-allow-professors-tas-to-open-carry-on-campus/? ps:Won't have to watch the wild, wild, west shows anymore, we'll have that right in our back yard!! Awesome!!!! Is Higgins’ Miami win a harbinger of shifting Democratic fortunes in 2026? If Miami’s mayoral race is an indicator of the national mood, color that mood surly. https://floridaphoenix.com/2025/12/17/is-higgins-miami-win-a-harbinger-of-shifting-democratic-fortunes-in-2026/?

Warner Bros recommends investors reject Paramount’s offer in favor of Netflix’s NEW YORK (AP) — Warner Bros. Discovery is recommending its shareholders reject an unsolicited buyout offer from Paramount Skydance in favor of a rival bid from Netflix it said will better serve their interests and the entertainment company’s audiences. https://apnews.com/article/warner-bros-paramount-skydance-netflix-d025a585f7a77cb9d8b066e65576101f?

Farmworkers Are Frequently Exploited. But Few Farms Participate in a Program That Experts Say Could Prevent Abuse. When Jon Esformes was in his 20s, farmworkers staged protests outside one of his family’s tomato farms, in California’s Central Valley, calling out the fact they were paid less than 50 cents for each bucket of produce they picked. The summer of 1989 was particularly memorable: The demonstrations were tense — strikers warned that anyone who crossed the picket line would “pay with your blood” — and then turned violent. Someone threw a rock at Esformes’ head, leaving him with a scar. https://www.propublica.org/article/fair-food-program-farmworker-abuse-exploitation?

Pam Bondi Dismissed Charges Against a Surgeon Who Falsified Vaccine Cards. It Emboldened Others With Similar Cases. Dr. Kirk Moore had been on trial for five days, accused of falsifying COVID-19 vaccination cards and throwing away the government-supplied doses. https://www.propublica.org/article/pam-bondi-fake-covid-vaccine-cards-kirk-moore?

Dig Tales BAS Dig Scholarship winners share their stories https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/bas-dig-scholarships/dig-tales/? Bible Scholar Brent Landau Asks “Who Were the Magi?” Revelation of the Magi text gives wise men’s view of the Christmas story https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/people-cultures-in-the-bible/jesus-historical-jesus/bible-scholar-brent-landau-asks-who-were-the-magi/?

♻️ Whole Foods' new food recycling tech Illustration: Shoshana Gordon/Axios New food recycling tech will turn fruit and veggie scraps at Whole Foods into animal feed — which will then be fed to chickens producing the grocer's eggs, Axios' Amy Harder reports exclusively. 🐓 The machine, from startup Mill, dehydrates and grinds food scraps into coffee-ground-like material, which can be composted or used as feed. 💰 The technology can shrink waste volumes by up to 80%, Mill says — cutting emissions and saving money. Mill's bins will be rolled out across Whole Foods stores by 2027. 🗑️ Says Mill co-founder and CEO Matt Rogers: "Waste is one of the largest sectors of the economy that most folks in our industry overlook." Go deeper.

Exclusive: GPT-5 demonstrates ability to do novel lab work GPT-5 has for the first time demonstrated it can do the kind of lab work that opens up a pathway for AI to take a bigger role in scientific experiments, OpenAI shared first with Axios. https://www.axios.com/2025/12/16/openai-gpt-5-wet-lab-biology?

Ballroom construction must go on as a matter of "security," Trump admin says The Trump administration argued in a Monday filing that construction on the president's massive ballroom project must continue due to "security concerns." https://www.axios.com/2025/12/16/trump-ballroom-construction-security-concerns? Inside the Trump Administration’s Man-Made Hunger Crisis On July 18, a mild, overcast night in Nairobi, Kenya, a team of President Donald Trump’s top foreign aid advisers ducked into a meeting room at the Tribe Hotel, their luxury accommodations in the city’s diplomatic quarter, for a private dinner. https://www.propublica.org/article/kenya-trump-usaid-world-food-program-starvation-children-deaths? The Summer of Starvation: Amid Trump’s Foreign Aid Cuts, a Mother Struggles to Keep Her Sons Alive After the Trump administration cut off food from the third-largest refugee camp in the world, thousands of families faced impossible choices as their children starved. https://www.propublica.org/article/trump-usaid-kenya-humanitarian-aid-starvation-families-children? Before Trump took office, many nonprofit organizations used words in their mission statements like: Marginalized Racism Equity Diversity More than 1,000 organizations have deleted words like these. According to this year’s tax filing, the American Athletic Conference, the $150 million collegiate sports league that includes schools like Rice and Tulane, is striving to be a leader in inclusion, but no longer in diversity or equity. https://www.propublica.org/article/deleting-dei-language-nonprofits-irs-forms? Amid Trump’s Proposed Pipeline Safety Rollbacks, Senator Questions Regulators’ Industry Ties After reporting by ProPublica revealed industry connections among Transportation Department regulators and showed how they are seeking to loosen oil and gas pipeline safety regulations, Sen. Maria Cantwell is demanding answers. https://www.propublica.org/article/trump-dot-oil-gas-pipeline-ethics-questions-senator-cantwell?

"It's idiotic": House moderates fume at Johnson over inaction on ACA House GOP moderates are threatening to cut a deal with Democrats after Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) ruled out giving them a vote on extending expiring Affordable Care Act subsidies. https://www.axios.com/2025/12/16/mike-johnson-aca-moderate-republicans?

👩‍🔧 What the jobs report really says Illustration: Brendan Lynch/Axios The jobs slowdown is real — yet isn't quite as bad as today's headline numbers suggest, Axios' Neil Irwin writes. Yes, the unemployment rate hit a new four-year high, and overall employment contracted. But the details are consistent with our long, gradual labor market slowdown — not an abrupt turn for the worse. 📈 By the numbers: The jobless rate rose to 4.6% in November, from 4.4% in September (there's no October data due to the shutdown). 📉 Employers cut a net 105,000 jobs in October, before adding 64,000 in November. 🐶 Reality check: The October job losses were entirely due to the federal government's DOGE buyouts. Separately, the absence of October household survey data meant a higher-than-usual share of November's participants were first-timers, causing a misleading unemployment bump. 🏥 Still, the overall job market looks soft, with sectors outside health care treading water at best. We should get cleaner December data early next month. Go deeper.

Trump defends Wiles after stunning interview President Trump is defending chief of staff Susie Wiles after her blunt, private views on the past year were revealed in a series of stunning on-the-record Vanity Fair interviews. "I didn't read it, but I don't read Vanity Fair — but she's done a fantastic job," Trump told the New York Post. "I think from what I hear, the facts were wrong, and it was a very misguided interviewer, purposely misguided." Trump minimized Wiles' saying that he has an "alcoholic's personality." "I've said that many times about myself," Trump said. "I'm fortunate I'm not a drinker. If I did, I could very well, because I've said that — what's the word? Not possessive — possessive and addictive type personality. Oh, I've said it many times, many times before." Wiles is the most powerful White House aide, credited with running a more disciplined, loyal and effective operation than Trump's first term, Axios' Zachary Basu writes. 😱 That makes her candid interview — in which she questioned the execution and outcome of some of Trump's most aggressive policies — all the more striking. Via X 🤳 Wiles wrote in her first original X post since October 2024 (above): "The article published early this morning is a disingenuously framed hit piece on me and the finest President, White House staff, and Cabinet in history." White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt also rallied behind Wiles, tweeting that Trump "has no greater or more loyal advisor than Susie." (Video) Cabinet members and Republican senators agreed. Wiles' interviews with author Chris Whipple stray from or contradict the administration's line on Trump's most controversial policies: 🗂️ Jeffrey Epstein files: Wiles had scathing criticism for Attorney General Pam Bondi's handling of the Epstein files, saying she "completely whiffed" by handing out "binders full of nothingness" to MAGA influencers and falsely claiming there was a "client list" on her desk. Wiles confirmed that Trump is "in the file" but denied any evidence of wrongdoing, chalking it up to him and Epstein being "young, single playboys." She also said Trump was wrong to claim that former President Bill Clinton had visited Epstein's island, telling Whipple: "There is no evidence." 🌎 Tariffs: Wiles revealed there was a "huge disagreement" over Trump's "Liberation Day" reciprocal tariffs, and that she recruited Vice President JD Vance to halt Trump's rollout until there was "complete unity." That effort failed, and Wiles admitted that the tariff process had been "more painful than I expected." 🏛️ Jan. 6 pardons: Wiles said she questioned whether Trump should pardon all 1,500-plus defendants, and advised him against freeing the most violent rioters — a warning he ignored. 🐶 Elon Musk and DOGE: Wiles described Musk as an "avowed" ketamine user and "an odd, odd duck, as I think geniuses are." She said she was "aghast" at Musk's unilateral dismantling of USAID. Via X Trump has praised Wiles as the indispensable architect of his second term, and her standing is unlikely to change. If anything, the interviews reveal the key to her success: She isn't a guardrail installed to influence or restrain Trump, as Vance told Whipple, but a "facilitator" of the president's vision. Video of V.P. Vance ...

Decades ago, Oregon State University operated a "Christian Club" that was called OSU Christian Club - this club was tied into Amazing Facts. I participated in a debate on that club shortly after I got my first internet capable device. There was zero doubt those folks were anti-Trinitarian. If Pastor Batchelor advocates that it was possible that either Christ could have sinned & lost His salvation or, due to sin or any other hypothetical situation Christ could eternally cease to exist (or become as if he never existed) Those two affirmations are absolutely incompatible with the Trinity Doctrine. In the interest of accuracy, I've inquired of Lutheran, Methodist, Reformed, Baptist, Evangelical and Eastern Orthodox authorities - all of whom were explicit that those two bullet points above are not compatible with Trinitarianism. I acknowledge that I've seen a few SDA's repudiate the two bullet points above and maintain Ellen White was wrong about that part of their theology and if Pastor Batchelor is one of those I stand corrected and offer my apologies. I can assure you that apologists associated with Pastor Batchelor that were running OSU Christian Club were militant about the real possibility of Christ being on probation when He incarnated and that that there was a real chance of failure of salvation for humanity and if failure had taken place Christ would have eternally ceased to exist. This I can assure you is going the other direction from Trinitarianism.

Amazing facts is an organization run by Pr Batchelor, who is most definitely a Trinitarian!!!!!

It won't let me in without a pass code??

That's an excellent point! Also it makes a lot of sense!! Because the Sabbath was instituted from creation not with the 10 Cs!!1

Seems to me from reading this, that he's one of the few that's actually reading and studying his Bible to get to that conclusion!! And yes definitely needs our prays as so many others do!!!

Here is a expansive explanation.. "Writing to the believers in Colossae, Paul cautioned, "Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a sabbath, which are a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ" (Col. 2:16, 17).1 Many have concluded that the "sabbath" in this passage refers to the seventh day and that this day is no longer binding upon Christians.2 More recently, those promoting the Levitical festivals have similarly claimed that Colossians 2:16 deals with the weekly Sabbath, but that it should be observed together with the feasts and new moons. Seventh-day Adventists, however, have generally maintained that the context shows that this refers to the ceremonial sabbaths. In the landmark Handbook of Seventh-day Adventist Theology, Professor Kenneth Strand hinted at a structural approach to the "feast, new moon, sabbath" trilogy: "It is also possible that Paul was using the common literary device of inverted parallelism [i.e., a chiasm], thus moving from annual to monthly and then back again to annual festivals"3—thus affirming the ceremonial sabbath view of Adventism. Where does the weight of biblical evidence lie? Apparently, while Paul was in prison in Rome,4 Epaphras visited him (Philem. 23), informing him of the spiritual growth of the Colossian church (Col. 1:3–8; 2:5) as well as of the heretical teachings making inroads there (Col. 2:1–23). This heresy is nowhere identified, so dozens of theories regarding it have been proposed.5 However, since at least 1966, scholars have concluded that "it is no longer fitting to discuss a possible influence of 'Gnosticism' upon the Colossian Religion or its refutation."6 In recent decades, serious Bible scholars, focusing on the scriptural text, have concluded that the challenge in Colossae had to do with "thought patterns with which Paul was very much at home—that is, some form of Jewish spirituality rather than Gnostic speculation or mystery cult initiation."7 The major theological thrust of this epistle is a correct view of Christ—"the visible manifestation of the invisible God"8 (Col. 1:15)—a Christology cogently related to salvation (Col. 1:13, 14; cf. 2:11–15), with profound implications for ethical living (Col. 3:4–4:6). The single great message of Colossians may thus be summed up in the declaration, "Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us" (Col. 3:11, NLT).9 Astutely, Charles Talbert noted that "it is against the background of this salvific narrative that the arguments of the Colossian letter unfold."10 Analyzing the structure of Colossians 2 Colossians 2:16 begins with "therefore" (KJV, RSV), indicating that the caution being sounded arises from what has been outlined earlier;11 and that, as commentators acknowledge, "verses 12 and 13 are central to the appeal of the letter."12 Ian Thomson has demonstrated that these two verses are the peak of a chiasm that extends throughout most of Colossians 2 (see figure 1). Figure 1: Colossians 2 Chiasm Introduction: 2:6 "As you have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him" A 2:7 "Rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith" B 2:8 "Beware lest anyone cheat you . . . not according to Christ" C 2:9 "In Him dwells . . . the Godhead bodily;" 10a "You are complete in Him" D. 2:10b "Who is the head of all principality and power" E 2:11 "Circumcised with the circumcision made without hands" F 2:12 "Buried with Him in baptism, in which you also were raised" F1 2:13 "Dead in your transgressions . . . He made you alive together with Him"13 E1 2:14 "Wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us" D1 2:15 "Having disarmed principalities and powers" C1 2:16 "Let no one pass judgment;" 17 "But the body is Christ's"14 B1 2:18 "Let no one cheat you;" 19a "Not holding fast to the Head" A1 2:19b "Nourished and knit together by joints and ligaments, grows"15 By recognizing "that chiasmus pervades Colossians"16 and "by appreciating the divisions and development of these thoughts within this significant letter, one may follow Paul's thought with added clarity."17 Interpreting the cheirographon tois dogmasin The above chiastic structure reveals that "the handwriting of requirements" (of v. 14, NKJV) corresponds linguistically to "the circumcision made without hands" (of v. 11).18 Thus, it is preferable to formally translate cheirographon as a literal "handwriting" or its equivalent;19 and that structurally and contextually, this "written code, with its regulations" (NIV) echoes the ceremonial regulation of circumcision. This unique term cheirographon is immediately qualified by tois dogmasin. Since written by the same author, covering similar issues, and sent to recipients of the same region, some have concluded that the "dogmasin" in Ephesians 2:15 sheds light on Colossians 2:14,20 thus making "reference to the Mosaic Law."21 Contemporaneously, Josephus and Philo likewise used dogma for Mosaic Law.22 Several scholars concur,23 noting that this is supported by most of the Greek church fathers and "is grammatically without problems."24 Though he frequently employed nomos for Old Testament law, Paul apparently did not use it here, so as (a) to avoid the impression that the entire Mosaic Law had been abrogated; and (b) to focus attention directly on the ceremonial law25—elements of which are listed in 2:16.26 As David Pao concludes in his 2012 exegetical commentary, "Even though a strict identification with the Mosaic Torah cannot be made," the cheirographon "should be understood in relation to the Mosaic law."27 Colossians 2:14 has been recently recognized as "one of the most vivid descriptions in the New Testament of what happened when Jesus died."28 "He [i.e., Christ] forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross" (Col. 2:13b, 14, NIV). John Heil observed that "the metaphor is convoluted, but presumably reflects again the idea of Christ's death as a sin offering."29 In brief, by formulating this daring metaphor,30 Paul directly connected forgiveness through Christ (v. 13b) to the "written code, with its regulations" (v. 14), which had required sacrifices for the forgiveness of sins, as well as to the death of Christ, by which these ritual requirements were "canceled" (Greek: exaleipsas, i.e., "abolishing a law"31). By His death, Christ consummated the ritual system—He "has taken it out of the way by nailing it to the cross" (Col. 2:14, HCSB). In Ellen White's words, "The ceremonial system was made up of symbols pointing to Christ. . . . It is this law that Christ 'took . . . out of the way, nailing it to His cross.' Colossians 2:14."32 These "regulations" that "stood opposed to us" allude to Old Testament laws that were " 'a witness against you' " (Deut. 31:26, NKJV),33 which Peter called a " 'yoke,' " " 'which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear' " (Acts 15:10, NKJV).34 Fittingly employing a Christological hermeneutic, Seventh-day Adventists Believe . . . summarizes, "At the death of Christ the jurisdiction of ceremonial law came to an end. His atoning sacrifice provided forgiveness for all sins. This act 'wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross' (Col. 2:14; cf. Deut. 31:26)."35 Verse 15 then reveals, as Dermot McDonald notes, "Christ the crucified is Lord; and all the hostile powers of the universe have become subjected to him. In Christ's cross the demonic hosts of evil have met their Conqueror."36 With this background, we can now proceed to verse 16, which begins, "So let no one judge you in food or in drink" (NKJV). Reflecting upon "judge," food and drink" Colossians 1:21, 22, 27, and 2:13 give the distinct impression that the Colossian church was predominantly Gentile, though Jews were certainly present37 and apparently formed "a significant Jewish element within the church,"38 for history records that "Colossae had a significant Jewish population."39 Based on similarities with Galatians,40several interpreters have concluded that the Colossian "heretics" were Jews or Judaizers,41 though chapter 2:21 suggests that the restrictions proposed went far beyond the Jewish law.42 David Garland states, "Newly formed Gentile Christians in Colossae are being badgered about their faith by contentious Jews"43 and were "being called upon to observe times and seasons as somehow necessary for their salvation."44 Paul's counsel is strong: "Let no one, then, judge you" (YLT). The word judge (krinetō) contextually means to "pass unfavorable judgment upon."45 As the New Living Translation has paraphrased it: "So don't let anyone condemn you for . . . not celebrating certain holy days."46 Before considering the terms feast, new moon, sabbath, a comment needs to be made regarding the "food and drink." While brōsis and posis may designate "eating" and "drinking," they are better rendered contextually with the nouns "food" and "drink," as in formal translations (ESV, NAB, NASB, NKJV, NRSV, etc.).47 Since the "food and drink come in the context of circumcision and the observance of special days,"48 it appears "these words doubtless refer to the meal and drink offerings presented by the Israelites."49" ... No “rest” for the “Sabbath” of Colossians 2:16: A structural-syntactical- semantic study

Pastor Doug Batchelor gave a good answer on what these ceremonial sabbaths are versus the Sabbath. 'I won't read all of Leviticus 23 because it's quite a passage but what it does is it simply itemizes all of the days, both the annual and the weekly sabbath, that were to be recognized. At the beginning of the list, it talks about the seventh day Sabbath, beginning with verse three: '...Six days shall work be done: but the seventh day is the Sabbath of rest, a holy convocation.' That means we are to convene and come together. You'll do no work on that day. He's going through a litany of all of the sacred days, including the weekly Sabbath. That doesn't mean they are all the same or of the same nature. Right on the surface, we see there's a major difference. There's only one that was a weekly Sabbath. The others were annual feast days. The weekly Sabbath was given at creation and the Bible tells us that the Sabbath was made for man. Well that would obviously be back in the Garden of Eden, Genesis chapter two. And beyond that, even before they get to Mount Sinai, God calls the seventh day Sabbath His Law, that's Exodus 16. The other ceremonial sabbaths came afterward and they were shadows of the plan of salvation. But obviously, our coming together for corporate worship and our need for a day of rest did not cease with the sacrifice of Jesus. Indeed, Isaiah 66 says even in Heaven all flesh will come to worship before him on the Sabbath. So just because it's in the list with the other ceremonial sabbaths doesn't mean that it was a ceremonial sabbath.'

Many Christians quote this text and fail to understand its meaning. Colossians 2:16 Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: AI almost got this right.. 'A "ceremonial Sabbath" refers to the special, annual holy days in the Old Testament (like the first and last days of Unleavened Bread or Passover, Pentecost, Day of Atonement, Feast of Trumpets) which were distinct from the weekly seventh-day Sabbath, serving as foreshadows of Christ's work, fulfilled at His cross, while the weekly Sabbath (Saturday) is seen by many Christians as a moral, perpetual command established at creation, separate from those ceremonial laws.' We see these feast days or 'ceremonial sabbaths' in Leviticus 23.. Leviticus 23:1-44 1 And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, 2 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, Concerning the feasts of the Lord, which ye shall proclaim to be holy convocations, even these are my feasts. 3 Six days shall work be done: but the seventh day is the sabbath of rest, an holy convocation; ye shall do no work therein: it is the sabbath of the Lord in all your dwellings. 4 These are the feasts of the Lord, even holy convocations, which ye shall proclaim in their seasons. 5 In the fourteenth day of the first month at even is the Lord's passover. 6 And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the feast of unleavened bread unto the Lord: seven days ye must eat unleavened bread. 7 In the first day ye shall have an holy convocation: ye shall do no servile work therein. 8 But ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the Lord seven days: in the seventh day is an holy convocation: ye shall do no servile work therein. 9 And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, 10 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye be come into the land which I give unto you, and shall reap the harvest thereof, then ye shall bring a sheaf of the firstfruits of your harvest unto the priest: 11 And he shall wave the sheaf before the Lord, to be accepted for you: on the morrow after the sabbath the priest shall wave it. 12 And ye shall offer that day when ye wave the sheaf an he lamb without blemish of the first year for a burnt offering unto the Lord. 13 And the meat offering thereof shall be two tenth deals of fine flour mingled with oil, an offering made by fire unto the Lord for a sweet savour: and the drink offering thereof shall be of wine, the fourth part of an hin. 14 And ye shall eat neither bread, nor parched corn, nor green ears, until the selfsame day that ye have brought an offering unto your God: it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations in all your dwellings. 15 And ye shall count unto you from the morrow after the sabbath, from the day that ye brought the sheaf of the wave offering; seven sabbaths shall be complete: 16 Even unto the morrow after the seventh sabbath shall ye number fifty days; and ye shall offer a new meat offering unto the Lord. 17 Ye shall bring out of your habitations two wave loaves of two tenth deals; they shall be of fine flour; they shall be baken with leaven; they are the firstfruits unto the Lord. 18 And ye shall offer with the bread seven lambs without blemish of the first year, and one young bullock, and two rams: they shall be for a burnt offering unto the Lord, with their meat offering, and their drink offerings, even an offering made by fire, of sweet savour unto the Lord. 19 Then ye shall sacrifice one kid of the goats for a sin offering, and two lambs of the first year for a sacrifice of peace offerings. 20 And the priest shall wave them with the bread of the firstfruits for a wave offering before the Lord, with the two lambs: they shall be holy to the Lord for the priest. 21 And ye shall proclaim on the selfsame day, that it may be an holy convocation unto you: ye shall do no servile work therein: it shall be a statute for ever in all your dwellings throughout your generations. 22 And when ye reap the harvest of your land, thou shalt not make clean riddance of the corners of thy field when thou reapest, neither shalt thou gather any gleaning of thy harvest: thou shalt leave them unto the poor, and to the stranger: I am the Lord your God. 23 And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, 24 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, shall ye have a sabbath, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, an holy convocation. 25 Ye shall do no servile work therein: but ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the Lord. 26 And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, 27 Also on the tenth day of this seventh month there shall be a day of atonement: it shall be an holy convocation unto you; and ye shall afflict your souls, and offer an offering made by fire unto the Lord. 28 And ye shall do no work in that same day: for it is a day of atonement, to make an atonement for you before the Lord your God. 29 For whatsoever soul it be that shall not be afflicted in that same day, he shall be cut off from among his people. 30 And whatsoever soul it be that doeth any work in that same day, the same soul will I destroy from among his people. 31 Ye shall do no manner of work: it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations in all your dwellings. 32 It shall be unto you a sabbath of rest, and ye shall afflict your souls: in the ninth day of the month at even, from even unto even, shall ye celebrate your sabbath. 33 And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, 34 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, The fifteenth day of this seventh month shall be the feast of tabernacles for seven days unto the Lord. 35 On the first day shall be an holy convocation: ye shall do no servile work therein. 36 Seven days ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the Lord: on the eighth day shall be an holy convocation unto you; and ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the Lord: it is a solemn assembly; and ye shall do no servile work therein. 37 These are the feasts of the Lord, which ye shall proclaim to be holy convocations, to offer an offering made by fire unto the Lord, a burnt offering, and a meat offering, a sacrifice, and drink offerings, every thing upon his day: 38 Beside the sabbaths of the Lord, and beside your gifts, and beside all your vows, and beside all your freewill offerings, which ye give unto the Lord. 39 Also in the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when ye have gathered in the fruit of the land, ye shall keep a feast unto the Lord seven days: on the first day shall be a sabbath, and on the eighth day shall be a sabbath. 40 And ye shall take you on the first day the boughs of goodly trees, branches of palm trees, and the boughs of thick trees, and willows of the brook; and ye shall rejoice before the Lord your God seven days. 41 And ye shall keep it a feast unto the Lord seven days in the year. It shall be a statute for ever in your generations: ye shall celebrate it in the seventh month. 42 Ye shall dwell in booths seven days; all that are Israelites born shall dwell in booths: 43 That your generations may know that I made the children of Israel to dwell in booths, when I brought them out of the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God. 44 And Moses declared unto the children of Israel the feasts of the Lord.

FIFA slashes price of some World Cup tickets to $60 after global fan backlash GENEVA (AP) — FIFA slashed the price of some World Cup tickets for teams’ most loyal fans following a global backlash and some will get $60 seats for the final instead of being asked to pay $4,185. https://apnews.com/article/fifa-ticket-prices-slashed-73e7147a8843d07af08fcc88068dce80?

Trafficked, exploited, married off: Rohingya children’s lives crushed by foreign aid cuts The sudden and severe foreign aid cuts imposed this year by President Trump, along with funding reductions from other countries, have shuttered thousands of schools and youth training centers and crippled child protection programs for Myanmar’s persecuted Rohingya minority in Bangladesh. Read more. What to know: With no safe space to play or learn, children are left to wander the labyrinthine refugee camps, making them increasingly easy targets for kidnappers. As a result, scores of children as young as 10 are forced into backbreaking manual labor, and girls as young as 12 are forced into prostitution. Violations against children in the camps have risen sharply this year, according to UNICEF. Between January and mid-November, reported cases of abduction and kidnapping more than quadrupled over the same time period last year, to 560 children. In a statement to The Associated Press, the State Department said the U.S. has provided more than $168 million to the Rohingya since the beginning of Trump’s term, although data from the U.N.’s financial tracking service show the U.S. contribution in 2025 is $156 million. Asked about the disparity, the State Department said the U.N.’s financial tracking service had not been recently updated and “generally does not show the latest information on all U.S. funding.” RELATED COVERAGE ➤ WATCH: Rohingya child marriages on the rise after Trump's foreign aid cuts Millions facing acute food insecurity in Afghanistan as winter looms, UN warns

Takeaways: Susie Wiles pulls back the curtain on the Trump administration in revealing interviews Sen. Mark Kelly calls Pentagon investigation into his remarks a move to chill military dissent Trump will go to Delaware for the dignified transfer of the 2 National Guard members killed in Syria Jack Smith set for private interview with lawmakers about Trump investigations Georgia Senate set to question Fani Willis over Trump prosecution Federal judge says he’s inclined to deny preservationists’ request to halt Trump’s ballroom project Former NIH scientist sues Trump administration, claims illegal firing over research cuts Jared Kushner pulls out of Paramount’s hostile bid for Warner Bros. Discovery FCC leader Brendan Carr to face Senate questioning for first time since Kimmel controversy Maryland to consider slavery reparations after Gov. Wes Moore’s veto is overridden FAA head vows to maintain safety measures implemented after tragic DC plane crash Cannabis entrepreneur Duke Rodriguez joins the race for New Mexico governor Virginia Roberts Guiffre’s memoir sells 1M copies worldwide Last U.S. cents sold at auction for a sum of $16.76 million were worth a pretty penny

House Speaker Johnson rebuffs efforts to extend health care subsidies House Republican leaders are determined to push ahead with a GOP health care bill that excludes efforts to address the soaring monthly premiums millions of Americans will soon endure as pandemic-era tax credits for people who buy insurance through the Affordable Care Act expire at year’s end. Read more. What to know: Speaker Mike Johnson had discussed the prospect of allowing more politically vulnerable GOP lawmakers a chance to vote on their amendment that would temporarily extend pandemic-era subsidies for ACA coverage. But after days of private talks, leadership sided with the more conservative wing of the conference, which has assailed the subsidies as propping up a failed ACA marketplace. The maneuvering surrounding the health care vote all but guarantees that many Americans will see substantially higher insurance costs in 2026. In the Senate, a bipartisan group was still trying to come up with a compromise to extend the subsidies, which fueled this year’s government shutdown. But senators made clear that any potential legislation would likely wait until January, after the holiday break.

Trump orders blockade of ‘sanctioned oil tankers’ into Venezuela President Donald Trump said Tuesday he is ordering a blockade of all “sanctioned oil tankers” into Venezuela, ramping up pressure on the country’s authoritarian leader Nicolás Maduro in a move that seemed designed to put a tighter chokehold on the South American country’s economy. Read more. What to know: In a post on social media Tuesday night announcing the blockade, Trump alleged Venezuela was using oil to fund drug trafficking and other crimes and vowed to continue the military buildup until the country gave the U.S. oil, land and assets, though it was not clear why he felt the U.S. had a claim. Venezuela’s government released a statement Tuesday accusing Trump of “violating international law, free trade, and the principle of free navigation” with “a reckless and grave threat” against the South American country. Maduro’s government plans to denounce the situation before the United Nations. Venezuela, which has the world’s largest proven oil reserves and produces about 1 million barrels per day, has long relied on oil revenue as a lifeblood of its economy. Since the Trump administration began imposing oil sanctions on Venezuela in 2017, Maduro’s government has relied on a shadowy fleet of unflagged tankers to smuggle crude into global supply chains. RELATED COVERAGE ➤ Trump expands travel ban and restrictions to include an additional 20 countries The US labels another Latin American cartel a terrorist group as the anti-drug war escalates