Mahaney on Busyness

C. J. Mahaney has posted a rather convicting article which posits that just being busy does not make one diligent, faithful, or fruitful. You can read the article here.

Bibliographic Resource for the Book of Esther

West Wickham has noted a new resource for those doing research in the book of Esther. Edith Lubetski and Meir Lubetski, The Book of Esther: A Classified Bibliography. Sheffield Phoenix Press, 2008.

According to the blurb at the publisher's website,

This comprehensive bibliography to scholarly works on the biblical book of Esther contains over 1800 references. It includes titles of books, collected works, Festschriften, theses, journal articles, essays in collections, encyclopaedia and dictionary articles, and online material. It is a classified bibliography, arranged in three main categories -- commentaries, biblical chapters and verses, and subject headings in alphabetical order.

The scope of the bibliography is international, and its focus is on research from the last hundred years. Scholars, students, clergy, and librarians -- among them literary scholars, psychologists, sociologists, historians, linguists, art historians, political scientists, feminists, and Christian and Jewish scholars -- will find this unique volume an indispensable resource and stimulus to further research. A special feature of the bibliography is its extensive coverage of Jewish sources.

Nice Review of Three Views on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament

Matthew D. Montonini has a nice review of Walter C. Kaiser Jr., Darrell L. Bock, Peter Enn's book Three Views on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament. You can read it here.

What do You Require of Your Potential Elders?

See this post on what one church requires before potential elder candidates are examined and nominated.Thanks to Colin Adams for pointing this out.

A Blog Devoted to New Testament Discourse Grammar

Steve Runge has a new blog devoted to New Testament discourse grammar. You can see it here.

SBL Related Site on Biblical Hebrew Poetry

Although the site appears to be in process, some might be interested in visiting a new website devoted to biblical Hebrew poetry. You can visit the site here.

Thanks to John Hobbins for the heads-up.

A Survey Pastors and Their Books

See this interesting survey of over 1800 pastors about their book budgets, personal libraries, etc.

Kamell on James 4

Miriam Kamell who has cowritten a commentary on James with Craig Blomberg has posted some observations on James 4. You can read it here.

Dating the Crucial Sources in Early Christianity

Mark Goodacre has posted the paper that he is presenting at this year's SBL meeting entitled, "Dating the Crucial sources in Early Christianity." You can access the pdf here.

Paul Among the Storytellers

Bruce Fisk has uploaded the paper he plans to read at SBL entitled, "Paul Among the Storytellers: Reading Romans 11 in the Context of Rewritten Bible." You can see it here.

Mounce on Philippians 1:6

See Bill Mounce's discussion on Philippians 1:6 here.

The Bible's Buried Secrets

Some might be interested in this film which is scheduled to air on November 18 on PBS. The following is the blurb from thew website (view here) which also includes a couple of short clips.

Providence Pictures has been working hard for years to produce The Bible's Buried Secrets, which premieres November 18th at 8:00 pm on NOVA. We scouted and filmed at archaeological sites throughout the Middle East—including Israel, Egypt, Jordan, and Syria. We interviewed leading biblical scholars from around the world. Our animators have built a one-of-a-kind Bible filled with masterpieces of art and brought ancient Israel to life through the most accurate 3D models. Our reenactments rival Hollywood for their art direction and cinematography, and surpass any film on historical accuracy—even going so far as to teach modern scribes to write paleo-Hebrew, the original alphabet of the Bible. We're confident that our film will be the definitive documentary on biblical archaeology for years to come.

In July 2008, NOVA showcased a 4-minute trailer to The Bible's Buried Secrets for a gathering of media from around the country. As soon as they started blogging about it, the public response was swift and impassioned. Attacks and a petition drive to defund PBS were launched by one organization that describes their mission "to change the culture to reflect Biblical truth" and that "God has communicated absolute truth to man through the Bible." They condemned the film without even seeing the trailer, let alone the film. We'd love to know what you think. Check out the trailer and feel free to join the discussion! And be sure to watch the broadcast November 18 on PBS.

Walton on Deuteronomy 24:1-4

John Walton has posted an interesting passage on the divorce text in Deuteronomy 24:1-4. You can read it here.

Latest Issue of Review of Biblical Literature

The latest issue of Review of Biblical Literature is out. Reviews that may be of interest from a Bible Exposition perspective include:

Kevin L. Anderson
'But God Raised Him from the Dead': The Theology of Jesus' Resurrection in Luke-Acts
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6246
Reviewed by Ron Clark

Paul Barnett
Paul: Missionary of Jesus
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6610
Reviewed by Don Garlington

David A. Brondos
Fortress Introduction to Salvation and the Cross
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6224
Reviewed by Ron Clark

Donald Capps
Jesus the Village Psychiatrist
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6392
Reviewed by Pieter F. Craffert

Robert R. Ellis
Learning to Read Biblical Hebrew: An Introductory Grammar
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=5917
Reviewed by Max Rogland

Alec Gilmore
A Concise Dictionary of Bible Origins and Interpretation
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6414
Reviewed by Jan G. van der Watt

Thomas L. Leclerc
Introduction to the Prophets: Their Stories, Sayings, and Scrolls
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6206
Reviewed by Bo H. Lim

Andrew T. Lincoln and Angus Paddison, eds.
Christology and Scripture: Interdisciplinary Perspectives
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6415
Reviewed by Mark Elliott

Theo A. W. van der Louw
Transformations in the Septuagint: Towards an Interaction of Septuagint Studies and Translation Studies
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6085
Reviewed by Francis Dalrymple-Hamilton

Grant Macaskill
Revealed Wisdom and Inaugurated Eschatology in Ancient Judaism and Early Christianity
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6278
Reviewed by Brian Han Gregg

Frank J. Matera
New Testament Theology: Exploring Diversity and Unity
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6197
Reviewed by Udo Schnelle

Ela Nutu
Incarnate Word, Inscribed Flesh: John's Prologue and the Postmodern
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6365
Reviewed by Larry D. George

Alexander Samely
Forms of Rabbinic Literature and Thought: An Introduction
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6293
Reviewed by Joshua Schwartz

Klyne R. Snodgrass
Stories with Intent: A Comprehensive Guide to the Parables of Jesus
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6403
Reviewed by Ernest van Eck

Marvin A. Sweeney
I and II Kings: A Commentary
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6040
Reviewed by Ernst Axel Knauf

John S. Vassar
Recalling a Story Once Told: An Intertextual Reading of the Psalter and the Pentateuch
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6009
Reviewed by Philippus J. Botha

Gary Yamasaki
Watching a Biblical Narrative: Point of View in Biblical Exegesis
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6428
Reviewed by David R. Bauer
Reviewed by Helmut Utzschneider

Blomberg on James 3:1

Craig Blomberg has posted some interesting thoughts on James 3:1 and the issue of women teachers. Blomberg makes some good points but I'm not sure that I find the "worst-case scenario" argument all that convincing. Read it here.

Kamell on James 2

Miriam Kamell who has cowritten a commentary on James with Craig Blomberg has posted some observations on James 2. You can read it here.

Hebrews SBL Group

The Society of Biblical Literature study group on Hebrews has a website with a number of this year's papers uploaded as well as other resources. You can visit the website here.

Thanks to Ken Schenk for pointing this out.

Introduction to Hebrews

You can download a fifty-five page sample chapter of a “Introduction to Hebrews” out of the recently published volume Faithful to the End: An Introduction to Hebrews Through Revelation by Terry L. Wilder, J. Daryl Charles, and Kendell Easley here.

Oxford University Press Holiday Sale

Some readers may be interested in the holiday sale at Oxford University Press. For example, they have Liddell & Scott's Greek-English Lexicon for 50% off or $85 and Metzger's Manuscripts of the Greek Bible at 73% off or $29.70. You can see the sale here.

"King David's Water Tunnel" and Biblical Archaeology

Todd Bolin has a thoughtful post concerning some of sensationalistic claims related to the so-called "King David's Water Tunnel" in particular and other similar claims in general. Read it here.

Mark Nanos' Website

I recently happened upon the website of Mark D. Nanos. Nanos has published at least two books that I am aware of on Galatians and Romans and works primarily in the area of Paul and Judaism. In any case, it appears that There are a number of Nanos' articles and lectures available at the website. You can visit it here.

Walton on the Blessing of Abraham on the Nations

John Walton has a nice post on the blessing of Abraham on the nations in Genesis. Read it here.

Search Full Text of All SBL Books

Mark Hoffman has brought attention to a way to scan all SBL published (currently?) books. Although I have not tried it out yet, this could be a helpful tool. Read his post here for details.

The Challenge of Introducing an Expositional Series

Peter Mead raises and answers the following:

When you start a new series of messages from a book, the first message is a challenge. Not just because you want people to be motivated for the series, but because the first message has to stand in its own right. Simply presenting the background information like the notes in a study Bible is not expository preaching. But if you give the background and then preach the first section, you may end up with two messages or too little time to really preach that first section. What to do?

Read the entire post here.

Free Audiobook: Calvin: Of Prayer and The Christian Life

Christianaudio.com is offering Calvin’s Of Prayer and The Christian Life as a free audiobook.

"Prayer as Calvin describes it is not giddy, and he goes on to give Scriptural definitions of proper thought, engagement, and attitude. What do the roles of patience and self-denial play in the role of the Christian life and what does Christian piety look like? What should our views be of the present life and the future life? These two sections of The Institutes guide us ever so thoughtfully and gracefully into his theology and practice of Christian living."

Click here and use the coupon code NOV2008 during checkout. Add the download format of Calvin: Of Prayer and The Christian Life to your cart and then enter the coupon code NOV2008 when prompted during checkout.