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Exploring the New Testament, Volume 1

A Guide to the Gospels and Acts, Third Edition

Exploring the New Testament, Volume 1

A Guide to the Gospels and Acts, Third Edition

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£20.99

Publisher: SPCK Publishing
ISBN: 9780281084623
Number of Pages: 384
Published: 18/02/2021
Width: 18.9 cm
Height: 24.6 cm
'A superb one-stop shop for students.' Dr Elizabeth Shively Tried, tested and trusted by students and teachers across the world, this widely respected study guide enables you to engage with an array of essential topics, including: - the Jewish and Greco-Roman background to the New Testament - literary genres and forms - issues of authorship, date and setting - the content and major themes of each book - well established and newer methods of study - the latest scholarship in the quest for the historical Jesus - the intersection of New Testament studies with contemporary faith and culture Now in its third edition, this popular textbook has been fully revised and updated, and includes new sections on: - the impact of social memory theory on Gospel studies - recent work on characterization in narrative studies of the Gospels - women in the Gospels - reading the Gospels and Acts theologically - how the Hebrew Scriptures are read by the New Testament authors - the resurrection and Ascension of Jesus - Luke’s presentation of Jesus' identity and mission - updated bibliographies, highlighting the most important and influential works published in the past decade Drawing on the authors' decades of experience in teaching these topics, this comprehensive textbook gives students a strong understanding and a solid foundation for further study.
How to use this book vii A. SETTING THE SCENE The historical context of Jesus and the New Testament 3 From the Persian period to the Jewish war 3 Sources of information 3 Old and New Testaments 3 Jewish sources 3 Greek and Roman historians 5 Before the Romans 6 The Greeks 7 The Maccabees versus the Seleucid empire 7 The Hasmonean dynasty 10 The Romans 13 The Herod family 13 Pontius Pilate 18 After Pilate 19 Jesus’ context 21 Essay topics 23 Further reading 23 2 Judaism in first-century Palestine 25 Five key marks of second temple Judaism 25 One true God 25 God has chosen Israel 28 God has provided a way to live 29 God has given the people a land, focused in the temple 34 Hope for the future 36 Parties and groups within first-century Judaism 37 Pharisees 39 Sadducees 40 Essenes 42 The ‘fourth philosophy’: the revolutionaries 42 Common Judaism 43 Further reading 44 B. APPROACHING THE GOSPELS What are the Gospels? 47 What does ‘gospel’ mean? 48 The Gospels as like other ancient literature 49 The Gospels as unlike other ancient literature 51 Truth in both views? 52 Why were the Gospels written? 52 Why these Gospels? 54 Some issues for today 55 Essay topics 55 Further reading 55 4 Where did the Gospels come from? 57 Luke 1:1-4 57 Using a Gospels synopsis 58 Source criticism 58 Form criticism 70 Redaction criticism 74 And now? 79 Essay topics 80 Further reading 80 5 Understanding the Gospels today 81 Tools for interpreting the Gospels 81 Narrative criticism 84 Social-scientific approaches 88 Rhetorical criticism 89 Reader-response approaches 90 ‘Ideological’ approaches 91 Structuralism 92 Post-structuralism and deconstruction 93 An approach to exegesis of the Gospels 94 The process of study 94 Pull the ideas together 97 Presentation 98 Essay topics 99 Further reading 99 Methods of interpretation: parables, miracles, apocalyptic 100 The parables of Jesus 100 The miracles of Jesus 104 Apocalyptic imagery 108 Essay topics 110 Further reading 111 The historicity of the Gospels 111 A subjective issue 111 What sort of documents? 113 What sources of information did they have? 113 Doubts about the historicity of the contents 114 Arguments for historicity from the contents 116 Essay topics 120 Further reading 120 Using the Gospels today 120 What are we to make of four different Gospels? 120 What about teaching and using the Gospels today? 122 An example: how to ‘preach’ Jesus and the Gospels 122 C. UNDERSTANDING JESUS The quest for the historical Jesus 127 Individuals and movements 127 Rationalism and Hermann Samuel Reimarus 127 H. G. Paulus and miracles 128 David Strauss and myth 128 The liberal lives of Jesus 129 A. Schweitzer and the eschatological Jesus 129 Rudolf Bultmann, myth and existentialism 130 The new quest 131 The Jesus Seminar 131 The third quest 132 Other modern views of Jesus 132 Issues 133 Presuppositions and subjectivity 133 Miracles 133 Sources 134 The religious context 134 Criteria and method 135 History matters 140 Essay topics 140 Further reading 140 7 The life of Jesus in the light of history 143 Birth and beginnings 143 John the Baptist 145 Galilee 147 The road to Jerusalem 149 Last days in Jerusalem 150 Essay topics 153 Further reading 153 8 The teaching and aims of Jesus 155 Why did Jesus die? 155 Jesus’ arrival in Jerusalem 156 Jesus’ demonstration in the temple 156 The final steps 158 Jesus’ perspective 158 Jesus and the kingdom of God 160 God’s reign in the OT and Judaism 160 Jesus and the kingdom 161 God’s reign in Jesus’ ministry 161 God’s coming reign 163 The character of the kingdom 166 Welcome for ‘sinners’ 166 The kingdom of the Father 168 The response required 168 Jesus’ ethics and his view of the torah 169 Jesus’ teaching about the torah 169 Jesus’ criticism of the torah 171 Was Jesus consistent? 172 Who did Jesus think he was? 174 Jesus as Israel 174 Jesus, his disciples and the renewed Israel 176 Jesus’ reshaping of Israel 177 The aims of Jesus 178 Jesus as Messiah 179 Jesus as the Son of God 181 Jesus as the Son of Man 183 Summing up: Jesus and the purposes of Yahweh 184 Some issues for today 185 Essay topics 186 Further reading 186 D. GETTING INTO THE FOUR GOSPELS Mark 191 Structure 191 A walk through Mark 191 Some key themes 202 Christology 202 Discipleship 203 Background and purpose 204 Authorship and date 205 Some issues for today 206 Essay topics 206 Further reading 207 10 Matthew 209 A look into the Gospel 209 How the Gospel is structured 211 Style 213 Theological themes 214 Jesus fulfils the OT story 214 Jesus fulfils the law and brings the higher righteousness 215 Practical obedience and judgement 216 Jesus brings good news to the world: Jesus, Gentiles and the church 217 The church 219 Kingdom and Christology 219 Sources of Matthew’s Gospel 220 The two source theory 220 Background and purpose 222 Authorship and date 223 Some issues for today 224 Essay topics 225 Further reading 225 11 Luke 227 Luke-Acts: a two-volume work 227 Structure 227 Journeying with Jesus in Luke’s Gospel 228 Some key themes 235 Salvation 235 Salvation for all 236 The Holy Spirit 237 Prayer and praise 237 Luke’s sources 238 Luke’s readers, purpose and authorship 239 Some issues for today 239 Essay topics 240 Further reading 240 12 John 243 A walk through the Gospel 243 Style 244 Theological themes 245 Jesus as Jewish Messiah 245 Jesus as divine Son 246 Reasons for believing: signs and witnesses 247 Is Jesus human in John? 248 The death of Jesus: how does it work? 249 Eternal life 251 The Holy Spirit 253 Future hope? 254 Believing 254 The sources of the Gospel 255 Dislocations in the text 255 A signs source 256 Theological variation 256 The synoptic Gospels 256 The background and purpose of John’s Gospel 257 Possible explanations of the differences 257 Authorship and date of the Gospel 262 In favour of the traditional identification 262 Against the traditional identification 262 Some issues for today 263 Essay topics 264 Further reading 264 E. THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES Acts 267 Acts as Luke’s volume two 267 What kind of book is Acts? 268 Style and presentation 270 Parallelism 270 Prophecy and fulfilment 270 Structure 271 A reading of Acts 271 Setting the scene 271 Mission in Jerusalem 272 Three big men 273 The gospel spreads in Syria-Palestine 274 Paul begins to travel; The Jerusalem meeting 275 Paul’s second and third journeys 276 To Jerusalem and then Rome 281 Acts and history 285 Titles and geography 285 Time and dates 285 A chronological outline of Acts 286 Acts and Galatians 287 Speeches 288 Acts and theology: some major themes 290 God 290 Jesus 291 The Holy Spirit 292 Mission and the church 293 Luke’s readers and purpose 294 Readers 294 Why did Luke write? 295 Authorship and date 295 Who is Luke? 295 When did Luke write? 297 Reading Acts today 297 Some issues for today 298 Essay topics 299 Further reading 299 Glossary 301

The Revd Dr David Wenham (Author), The Revd Professor Steve Walton (Reader)

David Wenham is Vice-Principal of Trinity College, Bristol. Before thathe spent 24 years on the staff of Wycliffe Hall, Oxford. He is the author of a number of books on the gospels.

'A superb one-stop shop for students looking for resources that open up the New Testament world and its writings.' * Dr Elizabeth Shively, Senior Lecturer in New Testament Studies and Director of Teaching, School of Divinity, University of St Andrews * Presents the issues clearly, encouraging students to interact with the text. . . very useful for both students and teachers. * Evangel * A well-proportioned overview of background material, introductory detail and controversial issues. * James D. G. Dunn, Emeritus Lightfoot Professor of Divinity, Durham University * I know no better book for its purpose. * Richard Bauckham, Professor Emeritus of New Testament Studies, University of St Andrews *

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