Teaching Old Testament Characters

  
See J. D. Greear's article on "How to Teach Old Testament Characters" here.
  

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.

Reinhard Achenbach and Martin Arneth, eds.
»Gerechtigkeit und Recht zu üben« (Gen 18,19): Studien zur altorientalischen und biblischen Rechtsgeschichte, zur Religionsgeschichte Israels und zur Religionssoziologie: Festschrift für Eckart Otto zum 65. Geburtstag
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7468
Reviewed by Klaus Grünwaldt
 
Jan Assmann
Of God and Gods: Egypt, Israel, and the Rise of Monotheism
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6870
Reviewed by James K. Hoffmeier
 
Roger S. Bagnall
Early Christian Books in Egypt
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7755
Reviewed by Stephan Witetschek
 
Assnat Bartor
Reading Law as Narrative: A Study in the Casuistic Laws of the Pentateuch
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7580
Reviewed by Thomas B. Dozeman
 
Christopher L. Carter
The Great Sermon Tradition as a Fiscal Framework in 1 Corinthians: Towards a Pauline Theology of Material Possessions
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7489
Reviewed by Philip F. Esler
 
Sandra Gambetti
The Alexandrian Riots of 38 C.E. and the Persecution of the Jews: A Historical Reconstruction
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7665
Reviewed by Magnus Zetterholm
 
Robert H. Gundry
Commentary on the New Testament: Verse-by-Verse Explanations with a Literal Translation
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7741
Reviewed by Peter J. Judge
 
Martin Karrer and Wolfgang Kraus, eds.
Die Septuaginta-Texte, Kontexte, Lebenswelten: Internationale Fachtagung veranstaltet von Septuaginta Deutsch (LXX.D), Wuppertal 20.-23. Juli 2006
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7380
Reviewed by J. Cornelis De Vos
 
Jeffrey L. Rubenstein
Stories of the Babylonian Talmud
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7680
Reviewed by Joshua Schwartz

Gospel of John Resources

  
Nijay Gupta has a nice discussion of the best Gospel of John resources here.
 

New Studies in Biblical Theology on Sale

  

Although I have not read or used every volume in the New Studies in Biblical Theology series edited by D. A. Carson, I have found some of the volumes helpful. The Westminster Seminary Bookstore is now offering a sale on individual volumes and on the whole series.

40% off a single volumes

50% off five or more volumes

52% off all 26 volumes 

Go here.
  

McKnight on James

  
Michael Bird has a nice interview with Scot McKnight concerning James. Read it here.
  

Biblical Scholars and Archaeological Digs

   
See John Byron's post "Why Biblical Scholars Should Participate in at Least One Dig."
  

The Need to Preach Christ

See this article.

  

Good Advice

“The key to good exegesis, and therefore to a more intelligent reading of the Bible, is to learn to read the text carefully and to ask the right questions of the text. One of the best things one could do in that regard would be to read Mortimer J. Adler’s How to Read a Book (1940, revised edition) with Charles Van Doren [New York: Simon and Schuster, 1972]).”

Gordon D. Fee and Douglas Stuart, How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth, 3rd ed. (Grand Rapids: Academie Books, 2003), 26.

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.

Henry Hanoch Abramovitch
The First Father Abraham: The Psychology and Culture of a Spiritual Revolutionary
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7758
Reviewed by D. Andrew Kille
 
Faith Cimok
The Hittites and Hattusa
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7663
Reviewed by Michael S. Moore
 
Andreas Dettwiler and Uta Poplutz, eds.
Studien zu Matthäus und Johannes/Études sur Matthieu et Jean: Festschrift für Jean Zumstein zu seinem 65. Geburtstag/Mélanges offerts à Jean Zumstein pour son 65e anniversaire
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7770 Editor(s):
Reviewed by Boris Paschke
 
Toshikazu S. Foley
Biblical Translation in Chinese and Greek: Verbal Aspect in Theory and Practice
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7678
Reviewed by Ken Chan
 
Paul Hoffman
Jesus von Nazaret und Die Kirche: Spurensicherung im Neuen Testament
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7593
Reviewed by Stephan Witetschek
 
Jae Hyun Lee
Paul's Gospel in Romans: A Discourse Analysis of Rom 1:16-8:39
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7677
Reviewed by Eve-Marie Becker
 
Mark Leuchter and Klaus-Peter Adam, eds.
Soundings in Kings: Perspectives and Methods in Contemporary Scholarship
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7613
Reviewed by Frank H. Polak
 
J. Ramsey Michaels
The Gospel of John
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7781
Reviewed by D. A. Carson
 
G. Sujin Pak
Judaizing Calvin: Sixteenth-Century Debates over the Messianic Psalms
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7429
Reviewed by Susan Gillingham
 
Begonya Palau
Les aparicions de Jesús Ressuscitat a les dones (Mt 28, 8-10) i also Onze (Mt 28, 16-20) com a textos complementaris
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=5866
Reviewed by Sylvie Raquel

    

Fee on the Hermeneutics of Acts

   
Gordon Fee in discussing the hermeneutics of Acts notes,

“The crucial hermeneutical question here is whether biblical narratives that describe what happened in the early church also function as norms intended to delineate what must happen in the ongoing church. Are there instances from Acts of which one may appropriately say, ‘We must do this,' or should one merely say, ‘We may do this'?

“Our assumption, shared by many others, is this: Unless scripture explicitly tells us we must do something, what is only narrated or described does not function in a normative (i.e. obligatory) way—unless it can be demonstrated on other grounds that the author intended it to function in this way. There are good reasons for making this assumption.”

Gordon D. Fee and Douglas Stuart, How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2003), 118–19.

  

Absence of Evidence

   

"Those who discount the Bible stories because of archaeological data are working in outdated "prove the Bible mode," along the lines of correspondence theories. They likewise have not realized that archaeology and the Bible provide different information, which is largely incapable of being compared and, most often, elusive. Information from the Bible and archaeology is parallel, not perpendicular; it supplements/complements, but rarely intersects. For true understanding to emerge, we must look beyond a "prove the Bible" (or "disprove") synthesis and draw on a coherence theory model.

"In the end, the relationship between the Bible and archaeology is fluid, not static. Both can help us better understand the other, but neither can, nor should, be used as a critique of the other. They must live separately and be blended and amended together cautiously."
  

David Merling, "The Relationship between Archaeology and the Bible Expectations and Reality," in The Future of Biblical Archaeology, ed. James K. Hoffmeier and Alan Millard (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2004), 33.

  

Why Did Moses Go up Mount Sinai Twice?

  
See this article by Alexander Zvielli in the Jerusalem Post. I am not sure that there is much new here for those who are aware of ancient Near Eastern covenant practices, but I found the discussion involving Josephus and Philo interesting.
   

Early Rabbinic Texts Online

  
David Instone-Brewer has announced that he has created an online resource for accessing and studying early rabbinic texts. This looks to be a great resource. Check it out here. 
  

The Difference Between Allegory and Parable?

I have been thinking through Thiselton's statement that,  

"An allegory therefore presupposes shared understanding; a parable creates shared understanding. There are two further differences. An allegory addresses insiders who are in the know; a parable attacks, or seeks to win over outsiders. Further, it is crucial that on the whole a parable presents an entirely coherent narrative world; an allegory can contain a string of independent applications. Often this is expressed by insisting that a parable has only one point. But although this often follows, it does not always follow, and this view has been attacked" (Anthony C. Thiselton, Hermeneutics: An Introduction [Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2009], 38).

Not in the Bible

  
See this article by John Blake.
 

Glorifying God in Your Work

  
A Few days ago, I posted on the topic of work in Proverbs. Now Josh Etter has a nice post on "12 Ways to Glorify God at Work."
 

Journal for the Study of the New Testament 33:4

The latest issue of the Journal for the Study of the New Testament is out. Here is a list of the articles and links to abstracts.

‘Who Can Forgive Sins but God Alone?’ Human and Angelic Agents, and Divine Forgiveness in Early Judaism

Daniel Johansson

Journal for the Study of the New Testament 2011;33 351-374
http://jnt.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/33/4/351

Not the Prologue of John

P.J. Williams

Journal for the Study of the New Testament 2011;33 375-386
http://jnt.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/33/4/375

Exploring the Sense-scape of the Gospel of Mark

Louise Lawrence

Journal for the Study of the New Testament 2011;33 387-397
http://jnt.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/33/4/387

Book Review: Gunnar Samuelsson, Crucifixion in Antiquity: An Inquiry into the Background of the New Testament Terminology of Crucifixion (Dissertation, University of Gothenburg, 2010)

Brian Pounds

Journal for the Study of the New Testament 2011;33 398-405
http://jnt.sagepub.com/cgi/reprint/33/4/398

Stoic Physics and the Christ-event: A Review of Troels Engberg-Pedersen, Cosmology and Self in the Apostle Paul: The Material Spirit (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2010)

John M.G. Barclay

Journal for the Study of the New Testament 2011;33 406-414
http://jnt.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/33/4/406

Paul in the Stoa Poecile: A Response to Troels Engberg-Pedersen, Cosmology and Self in the Apostle Paul: The Material Spirit (Oxford, 2010)

John R. Levison

Journal for the Study of the New Testament 2011;33 415-432
http://jnt.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/33/4/415

Paul’s Body: A Response to Barclay and Levison

Troels Engberg-Pedersen

Journal for the Study of the New Testament 2011;33 433-443
http://jnt.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/33/4/433

Overinterpretation

  
Although this example has been around for awhile it is still a great reminder of the potential folly of overinterpretation.
 

Eleven Questions Worth Asking

  
Trevin Wax has an excellent post entitled "11 Questions Every Pastor Should Ask." Read it here.
 

Choosing a Seminary

  

See this article by William Evans.

HT: David Murray
 

Free Audio Download of A Place of Healing

  
Christianaudio.com is offering a free audio download of Joni Eareckson Tada's book A Place of Healing for the month of June. For more details go here.

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.

Philip W. Comfort
New Testament Text and Translation Commentary: Commentary on the Variant Readings of the Ancient New Testament Manuscripts and How They Relate to the Major English Translations
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7640
Reviewed by J. K. Elliott
 
Randall Heskett and Brian Irwin
The Bible as a Human Witness to Divine Revelation: Hearing the Word of God Through Historically Dissimilar Traditions
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7804
Reviewed by Pieter M. Venter
 
Eric M. Meyers and Paul V. M. Flesher, eds.
Aramaic in Postbiblical Judaism and Early Christianity: Papers from the 2004 National Endowment for the Humanities Summer Seminar at Duke University
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7656
Reviewed by John Engle
 
Carl G. Rasmussen
Zondervan Atlas of the Bible
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7583
Reviewed by Wolfgang Zwickel
 
William A. Simmons
Peoples of the New Testament World: An Illustrated Guide
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7588
Reviewed by Moschos Goutzioudis
 
Oral A. W. Thomas
Biblical Resistance Hermeneutics within a Caribbean Context
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7658
Reviewed by Gerald West
 
Dvora E. Weisberg
Levirate Marriage and the Family in Ancient Judaism
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7120
Reviewed by Obiorah Mary Jerome
 

Obedience

  
See Kevin DeYoung's excellent post on obedience here.
 

Just Read It

“We have done almost everything that is possible with these Hebrew and Greek writings. We have overlaid them, clause by clause, with exhaustive commentaries; we have translated them, revised the translations, and quarrelled over the revisions; we have discussed authenticity and inspiration, and suggested textual history with the aid of coloured type; we have mechanically divided the whole into chapters and verses, and sought texts to memorise and quote; we have epitomised into handbooks and extracted school lessons; we have recast from the feminine point of view, and even from the standpoint of the next century. There is yet one thing left to do with the Bible: simply to read it.”

Richard G. Moulton, A Short Introduction to the Literature of the Bible (Boston: D.C. Heath, 1909), iii–iv.

The Theme of Work in Proverbs

One expects to find the theme of work in the book of Proverbs because work is so much a part of the human condition. From the beginning (Gen 2:15) man was given the responsibility to work. The Book of Proverbs seems to take it for granted that “work” is good and God-ordained. Therefore, Proverbs does not so much provide an apologetic for the goodness of work, but rather it provides an important reminder of the benefits of hard work and the dangers of laziness. Even so, such an approach must not be interpreted to mean that hard work is an end in itself. But rather, work is a means, which God has ordained to provide for the needs of his creatures. In general, God honors and blesses hard work and condemns sloth. [1]

[1] It seems reasonable to assume that the proverbs on work and sloth only apply to those who can work. There are exceptional cases where someone cannot work due to illness, disability, etc.