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Books > Religion & Spirituality > Christianity > The Bible > Bible readings or selections
This volume aims to compare the author of Matthew's Gospel with a
selection of contemporary Christian authors and/or texts. Recent
Matthean scholarship has highlighted the distinctiveness of this
early Christian writer by emphasising his clear Jewish perspective
in addition to his Christian affiliation. He can accurately be
perceived as both Jewish and Christian because he holds that
Christian commitment demands both observance of the Mosaic Law and
faith in Jesus as the Messiah. But if Matthew is distinctively
Jewish and Christian, how does he compare with other early
Christian writers? Much of the New Testament literature was
composed by Paul himself or by his later followers, and these
Christians held the view that the Mosaic Law no longer had
relevance in the light of the Christ event. Other New Testament
texts that are not Pauline, e.g. the Gospel of John and the letter
to the Hebrews, appear to agree with Paul on this point.
Consequently, Matthew stands apart from other texts in the canon
with the possible exception of the letter of James. The volume will
therefore establish the distinctiveness of Matthew by comparing his
theological perspective with his major sources, Mark and Q, and
with the two remaining Gospels, the Pauline epistles, the letter to
the Hebrews and the epistle of James. The comparison of Matthew
with non-canonical texts, the Didache and the letters of Ignatius
of Antioch, is important because much work has been done in these
areas recently. Given Matthew's distinctive portrayal of Jesus, a
comparison of Matthew and the historical Jesus is also demanded in
the context of this volume.
The primaeval blessing, 'Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the
earth, ' first announced to humankind in Genesis 1.28 is renewed to
Noah and his sons after the flood in Genesis 9.1. There is
widespread scholarly consensus that the ensuing dispersion in
Genesis 10.1-32 and 11.1-9 is the means by which the creation
blessing is fulfilled. Kaminski argues that the primeval blessing
is not fulfilled in the Table of Nations and that Yahweh's
scattering Noah's descendants in the Babel story does not
contribute positively to the creation theme. Rather, the creation
blessing is being taken up in the primary line of Shem (Genesis
11.10-26), which leads directly to Abraham. She further suggests
that divine grace is not absent after the Babel judgment, as is
commonly assumed, but is at work in the Shemite genealogy. She
argues that the primeval blessing, which is unfulfilled in the
primaeval history, is taken up by Abraham and his descendants by
means of a divine promise. While the blessing is in the process of
being realised in the patriarchal narratives, it is not fulfilled.
The multiplication theme is resumed, however, in Exodus 1.7, which
describes Israel's proliferation in Egypt. This is the first
indication that the creation blessing is fulfilled. Realisation of
the primaeval blessing progresses after the flood, therefore, from
Noah to Israel. Yet God's blessing on Israel is not for their sake
alone - it is the means through which the divine intention for
creation will be restored to the world. JSOTS413
This book is a study of the Johannine Christian response to the
fall of the Jerusalem Temple in 70 ce. A crucial text in this
investigation is Jn 2.13-22 and its context, which provide a lens
through which other texts in John are viewed. Kerr's examination of
the Temple festivals of Passover, Tabernacles, Dedication suggests
that in Jesus fulfils and replaces these, while in the case of the
Sabbath he effects a transformation. The overall conclusion is that
the Johannine Jesus replaces and fulfils the Jerusalem Temple.
This investigation looks at Paul's argumentation with special
attention paid to enthymemes. Enthymemes can be defined as a three
part deductive argumentation with an unstated assumption.
Enthymemes constitute an important part of Paul's argumentation
which until now has been relatively unexploited. Pauline studies
continues today to grapple with the question of the core of Paul's
thought and the investigation of the apostle's social world is
gaining interest among scholars. This study of the manner in which
Paul constructs enthymemes gives us insight into his thought world
and would be a valuable text for scholars and librarians.
A detailed examination of Proverbs 1-9, an early Jewish poetic
work. Stuart Weeks incorporates studies of literature from ancient
Egypt and from the Dead Sea scrolls, but his focus is on the
background and use of certain key images in the text. Proverbs 1-9
belongs to an important class of biblical literature (wisdom
literature), and is less well known as a whole than the related
books of Job and Ecclesiastes, partly because it has been viewed
until recently as a dull and muddled school-book. However, parts of
it have been profoundly influential on the development of both
Judaism and Christianity, and occupy a key role in modern feminist
theology. Weeks demonstrates that those parts belong to a much
broader and more intricate set of ideas than older scholarship
allowed.
This study of the language of Acts is based on M. A. K. Halliday's
functional grammar, which offers a theory based on linguistic
choices and the effects they have on readers or hearers.
Interacting with selected interpretations from, among others, C.K.
Barrett, Ben C. Witherington, Jerome Neyrey, Jacob Jervell and John
Lentz, Martin-Asensio argues that transitivity ('who does what to
whom') emerges as a key factor in the foregrounding scheme of Acts,
and this analysis offers a linguistically based perspective on
Luke's overall concern to underline the supremacy of the divine
will on the stage of human affairs.
This book adopts an inter-disciplinary approach to the study of the
theology, symbolism and argument of Hebrews. Employing sociological
models, the book examines Hebrews in the context of the early
Christians' construction and maintenance of a social world. In that
respect, the book elaborates the thesis that Hebrews was designed
to serve a legitimating function in the realm of social
interaction, that its theology, symbolism and argument were
designed to construct and maintain the symbolic universe of the
community of the readers. It is argued that we cannot properly
understand the theology, symbolism and argument of Hebrews apart
from its first-century context.
This book examines the portrayal of Israel as a royal-priestly
nation within Exodus and against the background of biblical and
ancient Near Eastern thought. Central to the work is a literary
study of Exodus 19:4GCo6 and a demonstration of the pivotal role
these verses and their main image have within Exodus. This elective
and honorific designation of YahwehGCOs cherished people has a
particular focus on the privilege of access to him in his heavenly
temple. The paradigm of the royal grant of privileged status has
profound implications for our understanding of the Sinai covenant.
This Festschrift for Leslie C. Allen reflects the ferment in
studies of Jeremiah. A group of international scholars examine the
location of the prophecies in Jeremiah's life and consider the
book's social, ethical, theological, political, and devotional
implications. >
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Konrad Schaefer
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The psalms are masterful poems that echo the tenors of community
life and worship as they project the scope of the human drama from
lament to praise. They chart a profound and vital relationship with
God, with al the ups and downs that this relationship implies.
Konrad Schaefer's concise commentary on the psalms relates their
poetic elements while respecting their historical context and
traditional use in the liturgy and, more importantly, their
ultimate value as a springboard to private and communal prayer.
In "Psalms," Schaefer focuses on the structure of each psalm,
its dramatic plot, the modes of discourse, the rhetorical features,
and the effective use of imagery to portray theology and the
spiritual life. Schaefer portrays each poem's inner dynamic to
acquaint readers with the poet and the community which prayed and
preserved the composition, allowing the believer to transpose it in
the contemporary situation.
"Psalms" is for those who would like to pray the psalms with
more intensity of meaning; for those willing to touch the biblical
world and taste of its fruit in the Word of God; and for devoted
readers of the Bible to become more expert as it helps experts
become more devoted.
Chapters are Introduction," "Book One (Psalms 1-41)," "Book Two
(Psalms 42-72)," "Book Three (Psalms 73-89)," "Book Four (Psalms
90-106)," and "Book Five (Psalms 107-150)."
"Konrad Schaefer, OSB, SSD, is a monk of Mount Angel Abbey,
Oregon. He currently teaches at Our Lady of Angels in Cuernavaca,
Mexico.""
Book V of the Psalter (Psalms 107-150) divides into three, with the
Songs of the Ascents (120-134) as the central section, and the
first and third units following parallel structures (historical,
Davidic, alphabetical, Hallel psalms). The units are all
compositions of the Return period: 107-119 for the reconstruction
of the Temple, 120-134 for Nehemiah's wall-building, 135-150 for
Ezra's mission. Psalms 120-134 follow the episodes of Nehemiah's
'memoir', in order. All three groups show evidence of
evening-morning alternation, and were intended for festal use:
107-118 at the Passover of Ezra 6, 120-134 at the Tabernacles of
Nehemiah 12, 135-150 at Ezra's Tabernacles (Neh. 8).>
Being Conformed to Christ in Community explores Paul's conception
of maturity, paying particular attention to the maturation process
and the role of the local church in facilitating this process.
Although central to Paul's theology, maturity is often overlooked
in Pauline studies. Samra argues that Paul understood his apostolic
commission to involve delivering mature believers on the day of
Christ. He suggests that the central motif of Pauline maturity is
conformity of believers to the image of Christ, who provides the
defi ning standard of maturity. For Paul there are fi ve means used
by the Spirit to conform believers to the image of Christ, which
Samra presents and analyzes as components of the maturation
process, namely identifying with Christ, enduring suffering,
experiencing the presence of God, receiving and living out wisdom
from God and imitating a godly example. Samra concludes by arguing
that Paul expected the local church to facilitate maturation so
that believers' participation in a local assembly would result in
their being conformed to Christ. REV DR JAMES G. SAMRA is Senior
Minister at Calvary Church in Grand Rapids, USA. He earned a doctor
of philosophy in New Testament from Oxford University and a masters
of theology from Dallas Theological Seminary.
This major study of a Markan genre, represented in the central
section 8.27-10.4, ranges through Greek, rabbinic and early
Christian literature, providing detailed comparison with the
anecdotes in Lucian's Demonax and the Mishnah.Moeser concludes that
the Markan anecdotes clearly follow the definition of, and
typologies for, the Greek chreia. His analysis indicates that while
the content of the three sets of anecdotes is peculiar to its
respective cultural setting, the Greek, Jewish and Christian
examples all function according to the purposes of the genre.
Since 1963, substantial objections have been raised against the
traditional view of the Pauline doctrine of justification, mainly
by New Testament scholars such as Krister Stendahl, E. P. Sanders
and James D. G. Dunn. This book evaluates the "New Perspective on
Paul" and finds it wanting. With appreciation for the important
critique already offered by Donald Hagner, which is included in
this volume, Peter Stuhlmacher mounts a forthright and
well-supported challenge based on established and more recent
scholarship concerning Paul's understanding of justification. In
particular he argues that the forensic and mystical elements of
Paul's doctrine of justification should not be played off against
one another. Rather Paul's understanding can be faithfully rendered
only within the context of his apostolic mission to Jews and
Gentiles and the expectation of the coming kingdom of God. This
book will be of interest to students and teachers of biblical
studies, biblical theology and systematic theology, and to those
engaged in Jewish-Christian dialogue, Protestant-Roman Catholic
conversation about the doctrine of justification, or discussions of
rival views of justification within Protestantism.
An important collection of essays by Professor Ernest Best, author
of the new commentary on Ephesians for the International Critical
Commentary series.His subjects include, for example, the use of
traditional material, the view of the ministry as expressed in
Ephesians, Paul's apostolic authority.These essays represent a
valuable companion and supplement to the commentary.>
From 1 Corinthians we know that the church at Corinth was beset by
all sorts of problems. Some of these problems resulted from
contacts with the pagan world - one member of the church cohabited
with his stepmother, one brought a suit against another brother
before the pagan magistrate, some ate idolatrous feasts at the
pagan temple, and others underwent baptism for the dead. This
refreshing and stimulating book seeks to understand the
significance of these problems from the perspective of the social
structures and conditions of this Graeco-Roman city, and places
Paul's response to them in the same context.
Narrating the story from the perspective of key characters gives us
insights into its many horrors and uncertainties as well as its
joys
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