Jul 26, 2014

Latest Issue of Review of Biblical Literature

The latest issue of Review of Biblical Literature is out. Reviews can be accessed by clicking the links below. 

T. Desmond Alexander
From Paradise to the Promised Land: An Introduction to the Pentateuch
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=8908
Reviewed by Keith Bodner

Ronald J. Allen
Reading the New Testament for the First Time
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=8859
Reviewed by Peter J. Judge

Daniel I. Block
By the River Chebar: Historical, Literary, and Theological Studies in the Book of Ezekiel
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=9402
Reviewed by Ananda Geyser-Fouche

Dave Brunn
One Bible, Many Versions: Are All Translations Created Equal?
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=9166
Reviewed by Patrick Schreiner

Richard J. Dillon
The Hymns of Saint Luke: Lyricism and Narrative Strategy in Luke 1–2
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=9383
Reviewed by Robert O'Toole

Stephen E. Fowl
Ephesians: A Commentary
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=8910
Reviewed by Thomas Slater

Susan Mathew
Women in the Greetings of Romans 16.1–16: A Study of Mutuality and Women’s Ministry in the Letter to the Romans
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=9339
Reviewed by Kathy Ehrensperger

Frederick J. Murphy
Apocalypticism in the Bible and Its World: A Comprehensive Introduction
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=8638
Reviewed by J. Todd Hibbard

David C. Tollerton
The Book of Job in Post-Holocaust Thought
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=9069
Reviewed by Bradley Embry

Josef Wiesehöfer and Thomas Krüger, eds.
Periodisierung und Epochenbewusstsein im Alten Testament und in seinem Umfeld
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=8588
Reviewed by Thomas L. Thompson

Jul 25, 2014

Daniel Study Guide

The nice folks at Kregel recently sent me a copy of Sue Edwards' recent study guide on the book of Daniel. I am not a big user of guides like this, but a quick scan of the contents suggests that there is some good stuff here. The questions are straightforward and typically relevant to the text. The guide has helpful "digging deeper" sidebars and there are occasional QR codes that link to YouTube videos. If study guides are your thing you might want to take a look at this one. You can read an excerpt here

Jul 24, 2014

Free: Greg Beale on Biblical Theology

You can download 22-lecture Biblical Theology course by Greg Beale for free on iTunes U. Use this link. Here is a list of the 22 lectures.

1: Introduction; Inaugurated Eschatology I
2: Inaugurated Eschatology II
3: Inaugurated Eschatology III 4: Inaugurated Eschatology IV
5: Inaugurated Eschatology V; Biblical Theology of the Gospels I
6: Biblical Theology of the Gospels II
7: Biblical Theology of the Gospels III
8: Biblical Theology of the Gospels IV
9: Biblical Theology of the Gospels
10: Biblical Theology of the Gospels VI V
11: A Redemptive Historical Perspective of the Temple I
12: A Redemptive Historical Perspective of the Temple II
13: The Damascus Road Resurrection Christophany I
14: The Damascus Road Resurrection Christophany II
15: The Eschatological Nature of Paul’s Anthropology and Relationship of New Creation to Reconciliation I
16: The Eschatological Nature of Paul’s Anthropology and Relationship of New Creation to Reconciliation II
17: Sanctification, Justification, and the Relationship of Christ to the Law I
18: Sanctification, Justification, and the Relationship of Christ to the Law II
19: The Eschatological Conception of the Church I
20: The Eschatological Conception of the Church II
21: The Eschatological Role of the Holy Spirit I
22: The Eschatological Role of the Holy Spirit II


HT: John Wayne Coatney

A Reflection on Older Commentaries


Contemporary students of the Bible often ignore or disparage older commentators and commentaries. But I try to make them a regular part of my study. While these older works may be bereft of the latest research, they are often rich sources of pastoral wisdom and spiritual depth. As a case in point, note the following words from William Jenkyn's dedication to his exposition of Jude.
"My aim in publishing these Lectures is to advance holiness, and, as far as I could do it, by following the mind of the apostle, to oppose those sins, which if people hate not most, are like to hurt them most; and to advance those duties with which, if people be not most in love, yet in which they are most defective, and thereby most endangered. And now again, I beseech you, that I may testify my unfeigned affection as well by my epistle as my book —labour to keep close to God in a loose age; spend not your time in complaining of the licentiousness of the times, in the mean while setting up a toleration in your own hearts and lives. That private Christian who does not labour to oppose profaneness with a river of tears, would never, if he could, bear it down with a stream of power. Lay the foundation of mortification deep. Reserve no lust from the stroke of Jesus Christ. Take heed of pleasing yourselves in a bare formal profession. Labour to be rooted in Christ. He who is but a visible Christian, may in a short time cease to be so much as visible; he who speaks of Christ but notionally, may in time be won to speak against him. Love not the world. Beware of scandals; take them not where they are, make them not where they are not. The common sin of our times, is to blacken religion, and then to fear and hate it. Despise not the providences of God in the world; they are signs of God's mind, though not of his love. Delight in the public ordinances, and highly esteem faithful ministers; they and religion are commonly blasted together. Shun seducers. Sit down under a minister as well as under a preacher. He who will hear every one, may at length be brought to hear none; and lie who will hear him preach who ought not, may soon be left to learn that which he ought not. Preserve a tender conscience; every step you take fear a snare; read your own hearts in the wickedness of others. Be not slight in closet services; and oft think of God in your shops, for there you think you have least leisure, but sure you have most need to do so. Let your speech be alway with grace, and a word or two of Christ in every company, if possible; and yet not out of form, but feeling."
Jenkyn, William and Jean Daillé, Exposition of the Epistle of Jude and the Epistles to the Philippians and Colossians (Edinburgh: James Nichol, 1865), vii.

Jul 23, 2014

Elijah on Mt. Carmel

The newest issue of Bibliotheca Sacra has a fascinating article entitled, "Pyrotechnics on Mount Carmel." The author begins by noting that,
"Three biblical fire miracles involve the prophet Elijah: fire from heaven  that consumed a water-soaked sacrifice and altar on Mount Carmel (1 Kings 18:146), fire from heaven that consumed two sets of fifty soldiers (2 Kings 1:1–18), and a chariot of fire that carried Elijah to heaven at the end of his earthly life (2:1–18)."
But what I found most interesting is the scientific insights related to fire and combustion brought by the author, Charles Baukal, is a combustion engineer. So if you get a chance, check out the article in the July-September 2014 issue. While your at it, you might want to look at the April-June which contains an article by the same author on Nebuchadnezzar's furnace from Daniel 3.

Jul 22, 2014

DBTS Recommended Booklist

Here is a recommended booklist produced by the faculty of the Detroit Baptist Theological Seminary.

Jul 21, 2014

Paul, Rhodes, and the Colossus-ians

Near the end of Paul's third missionary journey, Luke mentions the city of Rhodes (Acts 21:1). I found the following statement interesting on a variety of levels.

"Next day they sailed and passing Cape Triopium where Cnidus is situated and spotting the islands of Tylos and Nisyros to the southwest and Syria in the opposite direction arrived at Rhodes, the capital of the island of the same name. Founded toward the end of the fifth century BCE at the crossroad of the east and the west the island had a well-known maritime history. It was famous for the Colossus which was the work of the sculptor Chares of Lindos. In antiquity the statue was regarded as one of the Seven Wonders of the World. The fame of the Colossus led some people in the Middle Ages to think that Colossians to whom Paul had written were the inhabitants of Rhodes. At the time of Paul's visit the Colossus was already pieces lying buried where it had crashed in about 227 BCE. This was a gigantic bronze statue of Helios. It was some 40 m high and 250 tons,  standing on the mole or the hill overlooking the harbour where the Costello stands today. A Rhodian tradition places it where St Paul's gate is now. The statue commemorated the defeat of the seige of Demetrius Poliorcetes who failed to capture the city, his nickname 'Poliorcetes' standing for 'Besieger of Cities.' The bronze statue showed the god naked and wearing a gold crown of rays with his arms stretched in front. It is said that it could be seen from a distance of some 100 km." 

Fatih Cimok, Journeys of Paul: From Tarsus to the Ends of the Earth (Istanbul: A Turizm Yayinlari, 2004), 200. 

Jul 20, 2014

Steve Walton's Acts Materials

Steve Walton has provided this link handouts and videos from his study on Acts at the London Institute for Contemporary Christianity.