The Song of Songs and Early Latin Christianity

Karl Shuve has some brief but interesting thoughts here on the interpretation of Song of Songs in Early Latin Christianity.

Dave Black's New Testament Greek Portal

There are a number of links and resources (many free) at Dave Black's New Testament Greek Portal.

Volumes of The Old Testament in Greek according to the Text of Codex Vaticanus Online

The nine published volumes of The Old Testament in Greek according to the Text of Codex Vaticanus, are available as free PDFs at Internet Archive here.

HT: David Stark

The Goring Ox Laws in Exodus and the Talmud

This is a fairly interesting discussion of how the Talmud harmonizes the goring ox laws in Exodus 21:28-36.

Is the New Perspective on Paul Culturally Objective?

Michael Kruger has a good post here challenging the supposed cultural objectivity of the New Perspective on Paul. 

Benefits and Dangers of Expository Preaching

Tony Merida discusses the benefits and dangers of expository preaching here.

Origen’s List of New Testament Books

Michael Kruger has a post here pointing to further evidence concerning the authenticity of Origen’s list of New Testament books.

Free Course: Introduction to the Cultural Background of the Old Testament

Zondervan is offering free three month access to the course "Introduction to the Cultural Background of the Old Testament" taught by John Walton and Andrew Hill. You can check it out and sign up  here.

Logical Fallacies

I found this post on logical fallacies interesting. One could apply these not only to our society in general but also biblical studies. This is why D. A. Carson has a whole chapter on logical fallacies in his book Exegetical Fallacies.

Increasing or Improving Student Interaction

Steve Snyder has a good discussion here related to increasing or improving class interaction through a better use of questions. Make sure to look at the PDF, "Prompts to Elevate Students' Questioning Skills."

Are Baptism and the Lord’s Supper Only Church Ordinances?

Andy Nasselli has a brief but helpful post here interacting with John Hammett on whether baptism and the Lord’s Supper are only for Churches to practice.

A Forthcoming Introduction to Jesus and the Gospels

John Carrol's new introduction to Jesus and the Gospels is coming out in October. I don't know much about it, but you can read an excerpt here or visit a website dedicated to the book here. The website was a bit underwhelming to me but the resources are free and maybe there are plans to add to it one the book is published.

Two Free Resources from Richard Gaffin

In celebrating Richard Gaffin's eightieth birthday, Westminster Theological Seminary is making the following two resources available as free PDFs.

Seeing Christ in All of Scripture: Hermeneutics at Westminster Theological Seminary

Issues in New Testament Theology

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 but unfortunately you must be a SBL member.

Samuel L. Adams
Social and Economic Life in Second Temple Judea
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=10005
Reviewed by Benjamin D. Gordon

Nina L. Collins
Jesus, the Sabbath and the Jewish Debate: Healing on the Sabbath in the 1st and 2nd Centuries CE
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=10212
Reviewed by Matthew Thiessen

Martin Fuß
Die Konstruktion der Heiligen Stadt Jerusalem: Der Umgang mit Jerusalem in Judentum, Christentum und Islam
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=8499
Reviewed by Ronald D. Witherup

Gösta Gabriel
Enuma eliš: Weg zu einer globalen Weltordnung
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=10301
Reviewed by Michael S. Moore

Steven Grabiner
Revelation’s Hymns: Commentary on the Cosmic Conflict
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=10292
Reviewed by Peter S. Perry

Micah D. Kiel
The “Whole Truth”: Rethinking Retribution in the Book of Tobit
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=9148
Reviewed by Robert J. Littman

Bruce W. Longenecker and Mikeal C. Parsons, eds.
Beyond Bultmann: Reckoning a New Testament Theology
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=9936
Reviewed by Matthew V. Novenson

Bezalel Porten and Ada Yardeni
Textbook of Aramaic Ostraca from Idumea: Vol. 1 Dossiers 1–10: 401 Commodity Chits
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=10175
Reviewed by Siam Bhayro

Frederik Poulsen
God, His Servant, and the Nations in Isaiah 42:1–9: Biblical Theological Reflections after Brevard S. Childs and Hans Hübner
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=10269
Reviewed by Karl William Weyde

Marion Ann Taylor, ed.; Agnes Choi, associate ed.
Handbook of Women Biblical Interpreters: A Historical and Biographical Guide
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=8637
Reviewed by Alice A. Keefe
Reviewed by Nancy Tan

Chris Tilling, ed.
Beyond Old and New Perspectives on Paul: Reflections on the Work of Douglas Campbell
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=10000
Reviewed by David Johnston

Samuel Tongue
Between Biblical Criticism and Poetic Rewriting: Interpretative Struggles over Genesis 32:22–32
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=9881
Reviewed by Anthony C. Swindell

Terrance Randall Wardlaw
Elohim within the Psalms: Petitioning the Creator to Order Chaos in Oral-Derived Literature
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=10298
Reviewed by John S. Kselman

Steve A. Wiggins
Weathering the Psalms: A Meteorotheological Survey
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=10196
Reviewed by Nancy L. deClaissé-Walford

Four Popular Ways to Read the Song of Songs

Iain Duguid discusses the four most popular ways to read the Song of Songs here.

The Bones of Masada

James Tabor has an interesting blog post here related to the bones found in Yigael Yadin's excavation of Masada.

Divine Justice in Joel

This excerpt from the God's Justice Bible does a nice job of highlighting the three spheres of divine justice evidenced in the book of Joel.

Ruth’s Conversion Would Be Rejected Today

Susan Esther Barnes has interesting discussion here related to the issue of Ruth’s conversion in the Bible and how that conversion would not be sufficient for modern rabbinic standards. This discussion is not only interesting but it is also a great reminder of how gracious and free the gospel is.

How to Write and Research a Conference Paper

Steve Walton describes how he did it in his article in ReflectEd: St. Mary's Journal of Education. You can access Walton's article in this PDF of the journal.

Free Logos Book for July: Pentacostalism: A Guide for the Perplexed

Sorry about being a few days late, but the free Logos Book of the Month for July is Pentacostalism: A Guide for the Perplexed. You can also purchase the T&T Clark Companion to Reformation Theology for $1.99 or enter to win the entire five-volume T&T Clark Studies in Theological Systems. For all these offers you can go to the Logos' Free Book of Month page here.

Does PowerPoint Make Us Stupid?

This author seems to think so. In my opinion, the author's case is overstated (and probably deliberately so). But there are things to think about for those who use PowerPoint.

Recommended Resources for Faith and Work

Some might find this list of resource links helpful.

The Cairo Geniza

I am not sure that I buy the claim that the manuscripts of the Cairo Geniza is more important than the Dead Sea Scrolls, but this article on the geniza is interesting.

Food Sacrificed to Idols in 1 Corinthians 8–10

Fred Butler has a good post here related to the issue of food sacrificed to idols in 1 Corinthians 8–10. I often point people to David Garland’s work, namely, his BECNT commentary on 1 Corinthians and his article, “The Dispute Over Food Sacrificed to Idols (1 Cor. 8:1–11:1),” Perspectives in Religious Studies 30 (2003): 173-97. 

Just in Case You Missed It

Here is "A Handy Translation Guide For Christian Facebook Statuses."