The Latest Issue of the 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.

John J. Collins
The Invention of Judaism: Torah and Jewish Identity from Deuteronomy to Paul
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=11673
Reviewed by Marvin A. Sweeney

John J. Collins, T. M. Lemos, Saul M. Olyan, eds.
Worship, Women and War: Essays in Honor of Susan Niditch
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=10901
Reviewed by Bob Becking

Frank Dicken
Herod as a Composite Character in Luke-Acts
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=11621
Reviewed by Alexander P. Thompson

Courtney Friesen
Reading Dionysus: Euripides’ Bacchae and the Cultural Contestations of Greeks, Jews, Romans, and Christians
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=10566
Reviewed by J. R. C. Cousland

Robert H. Gundry
Peter: False Disciple and Apostate according to Saint Matthew
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=10540
Reviewed by Sonya S. Cronin

Jione Havea and Peter H. W. Lau, eds.
Reading Ruth in Asia
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=10929
Reviewed by Woo Min Lee

Hyun Chul Paul Kim
Reading Isaiah: A Literary and Theological Commentary
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=11617
Reviewed by Torsten Uhlig

Karl Allen Kuhn
The Kingdom according to Luke and Acts: A Social, Literary, and Theological Introduction
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=10274
Reviewed by Brian W. Bunnell

Stefan Nordgaard
Possessions and Family in the Writings of Luke: Questioning the Unity of Luke’s Ethics
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=11803
Reviewed by Thomas E. Phillips

Marion Ann Taylor and Christiana de Groot, eds.
Women of War, Women of Woe: Joshua and Judges through the Eyes of Nineteenth-Century Female Biblical Interpreters
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=11657
Reviewed by Susanne Scholz

Preaching the Parables

Although this article on preaching the parables came out last year, I somehow missed it. In any case, I think it provides some Screwtape-like cautions and good advice.

The Significance of the Dead Sea Scrolls for the Study of the New Testament

I appreciate the caution expressed below by Loren Stuckenbruck in using the Dead Sea Scrolls to shed light on the New Testament (see here for the book section).

The recognition of essential differences between “the New Testament” and “the Dead Sea Scrolls” as collections is enough to demand that we be cautious about attempting to draw any direct lines of connection between or of influence from one to the other. Such lack of caution is especially apparent in comparisons which have centred on some of the following sorts of claims: (a) that this or that figure in the Dead Sea Scrolls can be identified with this or that figure in the New Testament (as proposed, for example, by Barbara Thiering and Robert Eisenman); (b) that this or that idea or practice of “Essenes” or “the Qumran community” gave rise to or is responded to by the same in early Christian communities (so e.g. Brian Capper, Rainer Riesner, Yigael Yadin, and Hans Kosmala); and (c) that some of the instructions in the New Testament were specifically formulated with “Qumran Essenes” in mind, whether adopting them straight out – as in Jesus’ radical instructions on divorce (Mark 10:2-9) and oath-taking (Matt 5:33-37) – or rejecting them – as in Jesus’ directive to love one’s enemy over against those who endorse a view to love their neighbor and hate their enemy (Matt 5:43).

Loren Stuckenbruck, “The Dead Sea Scrolls and the New Testament,” in Qumran and the Bible: Studying the Jewish and Christian Scriptures in Light of the Dead Sea Scrolls, ed. Nóra Dávid and Armin Lange (Leuven: Peeters, 2010), 134–35.

That being said Stuckenbruck identifies seven “kinds of contributions Scrolls research can make to our understanding of traditions that circulated through the writings of Jesus’ immediate followers and early Christian communities” (pp. 137–68).

Eight Questions to Ask in Mentoring

Although this article is written from a business perspective, it does provide some helpful questions to ask in the mentoring process and it wouldn't take too much effort to adapt these to a ministry context.

Ten Things You Should Know about the Exodus

Alistair Roberts identifies ten truths that you should know about the Exodus here. This is a list of the tend but do read the fuller discussion using the link.

1. The deliverance from Egypt is not the first example of the exodus pattern in the Bible.

2. The exodus is a pattern that can be broken down into many stages.

3. It is an event in which God discloses his identity.

4. The exodus is institutionalized and made foundational for the future self-understanding of the people of God.

5. The exodus and the exodus pattern help us to understand the meaning of and connections between events.

6. The exodus is a basis for prophetic expectation.

7. The exodus provides us with a framework within which to understand the work of Christ.

8. The exodus reveals the unity of Scripture and of the work of redemption to which it bears witness.

9. Both Baptism and the Lord’s Supper draw upon an exodus pattern.

10. The exodus gives us a sense of our place in God’s work of redemption.

Wipf & Stock Sale

Wipf & Stock is offering 50% off of their entire inventory until April 3. Use the code INV50 during checkout. Note that all sales are non-refundable. You can access the website here or the list of titles here.

Why You Should Be Reading

I am probably preaching to the choir here, but here is another article touting the benefits of reading.

Comparing the World’s Oldest Torah Scrolls and the Recent

Gary Rendsburg writes about the world’s oldest Torah scrolls and the recent acquisition by the Library of Congress here.

The Latest Issue of the 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.

Aaron Chalmers
Interpreting the Prophets: Reading, Understanding and Preaching from the Worlds of the Prophets
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=10623
Reviewed by Paul L. Redditt

István Czachesz
Cognitive Science and the New Testament: A New Approach to Early Christian Research
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=11647
Reviewed by L. Gregory Bloomquist

Nathaniel P. DesRosiers and Lily C. Vuong, eds.
Religious Competition in the Greco-Roman World
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=11358
Reviewed by Evgenia Moiseeva

Lewis R. Donelson
Pseudepigraphy and Ethical Argument in the Pastoral Epistles
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=10957
Reviewed by Charles Bumgardner

Yosef Garfinkel and Madeleine Mumcuoglu
Solomon’s Temple and Palace: New Archaeological Discoveries
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=11414
Reviewed by Ralph K. Hawkins

Joel S. Kaminsky, Joel N. Lohr, and Mark Reasoner
The Abingdon Introduction to the Bible: Understanding Jewish and Christian Scriptures
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=9769
Reviewed by Marcel V. Macelaru

Christos Karakolis, Karl-Wilhelm Niebuhr, and Sviatoslav Rogalsky, eds.
Gospel Images of Jesus Christ in Church Tradition and in Biblical Scholarship: Fifth International East–West Symposium of New Testament Scholars, Minsk, September 2 to 9, 2010
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=8857
Reviewed by Valeriy A. Alikin

Francis M. Macatangay
When I Die, Bury Me Well: Death, Burial, Almsgiving, and Restoration in the Book of Tobit
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=11614
Reviewed by Micah D. Kiel

Dennis R. MacDonald
The Dionysian Gospel: The Fourth Gospel and Euripides
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=11778
Reviewed by Jo-Ann A. Brant

Charlene van der Walt
Toward a Communal Reading of 2 Samuel 13: Ideology and Power within the Intercultural Bible Reading Process
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=10762
Reviewed by Anne Létourneau

Determining the Jewishness of the Pseudepigrapha

While the Jewishness of the pseudepigrapha was generally accepted in my theological training, recent scholarship has challenged this assumption. In seeking to address this issue, James Davila has identified “five signature features” that help to verify the Jewishness of a given text. Davila’s features are:

• Substantial Jewish content and evidence of a pre-Christian date;
• Compelling evidence that a work was translated from Hebrew;
• Sympathetic concern with the Jewish ritual cult;
• Sympathetic concern with Jewish Law/Torah and halakah;
• Concern with Jewish ethnic and national interest.

James R. Davila, The Provenance of Pseudepigrapha: Jewish, Christian, or Other? (Leiden, Brill, 2005), 65 as referenced in John J. Collins, “Early Judaism in Modern Scholarship,” in Early Judaism: A Comprehensive Overview, ed. John J. Collins and Daniel C. Harlow (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2012), 9.

One though struck me as I was thinking through this list. Namely, what if one applied the list to the New Testament. Would it affect the debate about the Jewishness of the New Testament?

Köstenberger on Bblical Theology

You can find two recent addresses by Andreas Köstenberger on biblical theology in print here and here and in video here and here.

The Function of the Transfiguration in 2 Peter

I think Michael Kok is spot on here in suggesting that the reference to the Transfiguration in 2 Peter 1 is more than a validation of Peter as an eyewitness (although I believe it is that) but fits within the broader eschatological argument within the epistle.

Another New Testament Greek Resource

Hopefully, by now you are aware of, and better yet using, the wonderful resources of Daily Dose of Greek and Daily Dose of Hebrew. But now NT Resources, a website established by the late Rod Decker, is starting "Greek for a Week," a series of short videos that will go through the Greek of Philemon. The first two videos are available here and here.   

Free Productivity Apps

David Miller has discusses some free apps that you might want to consider here.

Where Is the Bethsaida Mentioned in the Gospels?

Ben Witherington talks about that question here. There are also two useful maps noting the two main proposals.

Online Bibliographies for 2 Peter

You can find links to five of them here.

Free Course on Acts by Craig Keener

BiblicalTraining.org is offering free audio of Craig Keener teaching the book of Acts. Check it out here.

Multi-Site Churches

Here is an interesting overview of multi-site churches.

Slides on Acts

Steve Walton has made two presentations introducing the book of Acts available here.

Reading the Bible in Community

Might friend Brian Wright identifies four reasons to read the Bible in community 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 but unfortunately you must be a SBL member.

Ryan P. Bonfiglio, ed.
A Study Companion to Introduction to the Hebrew Bible
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=9905
Reviewed by Blake A. Jurgens

John J. Collins
Introduction to the Hebrew Bible
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=9911
Reviewed by Blake A. Jurgens

Bryan R. Dyer
Suffering in the Face of Death: The Epistle to the Hebrews and Its Context of Situation
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=11697
Reviewed by Bryan J. Whitfield

C. D. Elledge
Resurrection of the Dead in Early Judaism: 200 BCE–CE 200
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=11756
Reviewed by Joshua Schwartz

Leander Keck
Why Christ Matters: Toward a New Testament Christology
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=10520
Reviewed by Dieter T. Roth

Mark A. Leuchter and David T. Lamb
The Historical Writings: Introducing Israel’s Historical Literature
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=11319
Reviewed by Kyle Greenwood

Yoseop Ra
Q, the First Writing about Jesus
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=11276
Reviewed by Sarah E. Rollens

Margaret G. Sim
A Relevant Way to Read: A New Approach to Exegesis and Communication
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=11354
Reviewed by Stephen Pattemore

Heidi Wendt
At the Temple Gates: The Religion of Freelance Experts in the Roman Empire
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=11377
Reviewed by Timothy Luckritz Marquis

Siu Fung Wu
Suffering in Romans
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=10599
Reviewed by Michael E. Peach

Free Logos Book for March: From Bondage to Liberty: The Gospel according to Moses

The free Logos Book for the Month for March is From Bondage to Liberty: The Gospel according to Moses. You can also purchase A Theology of James for $1.99 and Reformed Expository Commentary: Acts for $4.99. You can register for a chance win John Frame's four-volume A Theology of Lordship. For all these offers, go to the Logos' Free Book of Month page here.

How Two Evangelical Biblical Scholars Treat Scripture

You can read here how Dan Block and Richard Schultz believe that evangelicals ought to treat Scripture.

The Purpose of Biblical Theology

Scot Hafemann, recalling a challenge articulated by the late Carl F. H. Henry of an "articulation of an enduring Christian life and worldview with revelatory excitement that transcends technological science and heralds an unreviseable truth claim that replies to critics who decry reason," rightly suggests the following. "The purpose of biblical theology, if history and theology, faith and reason, 'law and gospel' can be wed again, is to answer this need, and in so doing to find doxology at the end of theology. For the final goal of biblically driven and integrated theology is not knowledge per se, but praise."

Scott Hafemann, “What’s the Point of Biblical Theology? Reflections Prompted by Brevard Childs,” in BiblicalTheology: Past, Present, and Future, ed. Corey Walsh and Mark. W Elliott, (Cascade: Eugene, OR, 2016), 120.

Journal for the Study of the New Testament 40:3

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.

Trusting in Jesus - David Konstan

Pistis as Relational Way of Life in Galatians - Peter Oakes

A Map of Understanding: The Riskiness of Trust in the World of the Early Christians - Loveday Alexander

Faith and the Fourth Gospel: A Conversation with Teresa Morgan - Judith M. Lieu

Faith in Dialogue - Teresa Morgan

Did Paul Refuse an Offer of Support from the Corinthians? - Ryan S. Schellenberg

Seeing Visions: The Persuasive Power of Sight in the Acts of the Apostles - Deborah Thompson Prince

Consistency Isn’t Everything: Self-Commendation in 2 Corinthians - Matthew C. Pawlak

Missing ‘Particles’ in Disputed Pauline Letters? A Question of Method - Jermo van Nes