Testament Studies Research Articles

Making mega-space for others: Towards theology of mega-friendship from the table fellowship story according to Luke 5:27–32

The purpose of the article is to interpret the story of the table fellowship in the Gospel of Luke 5:27–32 and construct the theology of mega-friendship with the Other in the context of a pluralistic society. What is happening in the present is that human communities should be living together and facing the fact of differences in the races, ethnic groups, cultural entities or religious communities. In this context, there is a kind of global fear of strangers, rejection of others and conflict or violence against those who differ. By interpreting the text, I argue that Christianity is called to participate in the mega-friendship created by God by making mega-space and befriending the Other. Mega-friendship in the table fellowship is to sustain life in love, equality, compassion, peace and transformation. The theology’s construction begins by explaining the socio-historical context of the table fellowship story, exposing the meaning of the story and constructing the theology of mega-friendship in the context of a pluralistic society.Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: This research has interdisciplinary implications. It departs from New Testament studies to constructive theology by using a pluralism perspective. By interpreting the table fellowship story in Luke 5:27–32, there is a meaning of the text on theology of friendship and its relevance as a sign of Christian presence in the pluralistic society of the Indonesian context.

Concepts and Methods in the Study of the Qur’ān

This paper addresses methodological issues in Qur’anic studies. At first, it intends to explain, through historiographical analysis, why methods proved fruitful in biblical and New Testament studies, such as form criticism and redaction criticism, have been disregarded in Qur’anic studies; secondly, it vindicates the application of such methods to the Qur’anic corpus; thirdly, it tries to exemplify the relevance of redaction criticism through examples. Two main issues are then discussed: the best way to account for the “synoptic problem” (the presence, in the Qur’ān, of variant parallel narratives), through an examination of some aspects of the Adam-Iblīs narratives (more precisely the composition of Q 2:30–38 and the nature of the relations between Q 38:71–85 and Q 15:26–43); and the beginning of Q 55. Two main conclusions are reached: first, the later versions of a parallel story are, in the examples discussed here, rewritings of earlier stories (namely, re-compositions based on a written version); second, sura 55 features the intervention of different authors, with two different profiles.

Re-thinking the dynamics of a pluralistic society in Acts 15:1-35 and contemporary Zimbabwean society: A Narratological Approach

From time immemorial, ethnic diversity in society often resulted in conflict instead of cooperation. Religion played a pivotal role in uniting or dividing people. In the New Testament world, James Dunn (2006) describes the dynamics of a pluralistic society as that of unity in diversity. Furthermore, other prominent scholars in the New Testament studies such as Haenchen (1985:467) and Witherington (1998:439) aptly describe Acts 15:1-35 as a “turning point” and a “watershed”, respectively, in relation to the dynamics of ethnic conflict resolution. The main thrust of this paper to interrogate a conflict-resolution in the pluralistic environment of Acts 15. This paper will be informed by insights and the lens of narrative method. The coming of this method into the New Testament studies was not well received by traditional scholars who viewed it as taking the Bible as fictional as work. Nevertheless, this paper maintains that the Council of Jerusalem in Acts 15 (50 CE) can be examined and analysed using narratological insights.

Do Mark 7:1–23 and Matthew 15:1–20 condone the unusual practices of New Prophetic Pentecostal Churches?

The leaders of certain New Prophetic Pentecostal Churches (NPPCs) perform rituals that are very unusual when compared with traditional church rituals and practices. These practices include eating grass, rats or snakes, drinking petrol and spraying Doom on people so that they would be healed and be closer to God. The trend to perform these unusual rituals has spread throughout South Africa. Leaders from NPPCs often quote Mark 7:14–19 and Matthew 15:10–11, 16–18 to justify their actions. In this study, these parallel texts will be considered in their literary and socio-cultural contexts to determine whether or not they can be taken to condone the activities of these church leaders.Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: The study will find that Mark 7:14–19 and Matthew 15:10–11, 16–18 either condone or do not condone the unusual activities of NPPCs and their leaders. Either way, the findings will be relevant for New Testament studies, practical theology, religion studies and systematic theology.

A social identity complexity theory reading of Philemon

This article provides new perspectives on navigating complex social identity in the letter to Philemon by means of the heuristic use of social identity complexity theory (SICT) in combination with socio-rhetorical analysis (SRA). The application of SICT as a heuristic tool in New Testament (NT) studies is relatively new, but it is positioned within the novel research being carried out on social identity theory in the NT.Contribution: This article wants to make a new contribution by illustrating how SICT can help us to think in more nuanced ways about nested identity(s) in Philemon.

Überlegungen zu ausgewählten Aspekten der Behandlung des Jeremiabuchs in der Monographie von Benjamin Ziemer „Kritik des Wachstumsmodells“ (2020)

Abstract In a massive study, Benjamin Ziemer has launched a scathing stricture of redaction criticism in Old Testament studies. Based on comparative material from an impressive range of Ancient Near Eastern, biblical, early Jewish and early Christian literature, he maintains that diachronic research is unable to deliver meaningful reconstructions that reach more than one stage of textual development behind the present biblical text. Moving beyond that boundary would amount to unfettered speculation. While his appraisal is overwhelmingly negative, there is one biblical book on which he endeavors to devise a redaction-critical hypothesis of his own: the book of Jeremiah. The article evaluates Ziemer’s theory on Jeremiah and draws some general conclusions regarding the validity of his verdict on traditional redaction-critical research.

Else K. Holt: Narrative and Other Readings in the Book of Esther. The Library of Hebrew Bible/Old Testament Studies 712

Else K. Holt: Narrative and Other Readings in the Book of Esther. The Library of Hebrew Bible/Old Testament Studies 712

Divine Discourse in the Epistle to the Hebrews: The Recontextualization of Spoken Quotations of Scripture. Society for New Testament Studies Monograph 178

Divine Discourse in the Epistle to the Hebrews: The Recontextualization of Spoken Quotations of Scripture. Society for New Testament Studies Monograph 178

Can Study of the Historical Jesus Escape its Typographical Captivity?

Abstract As part of the deepening diversification of biblical studies, several lines of research are now undermining the print-cultural assumptions on which New Testament studies developed. The first section offers summaries of important inquiries into ancient communications media: the dominant oral communication and the uses of writing; revisionist text-criticism of manuscripts of texts later included in the Hebrew Bible; the oral-written cultivation of their cultural repertoire by Judean scribes; the parallel oral cultivation of Israelite popular tradition; revisionist criticism of Gospel texts; and the learning and oral performance of Gospel texts. These separate but related lines of research are undermining the standard print-cultural assumptions, concepts, and approaches of Jesus studies. The second section explores the implications of these researches that open toward an alternative view of what the sources are, a more comprehensive approach to the historical Jesus appropriate to ancient communications media, and a reconceptualization of Jesus studies.

The Book of Jonah and the Hermeneutics of Ferdinand E. Deist

Ferdinand E. Deist (1944–1997) was a critical scholar and a prolific author, and had an immeasurable influence on Old Testament and ancient Near Eastern scholarship in South Africa during the last quarter of the previous century. Although he never claimed to be working within the new paradigm which dawned in Old Testament studies towards the end of the nineteenth century, it is evident that he was fully at home within this paradigm. The article does not discuss all Deist’s publications in order to vindicate the claim. It only discusses his earliest publications. His treatment of Jonah opened the doors for many of his students to follow in his wake and to acquaint themselves with historical-critical methods of studying the Bible. Willie van Heerden, who is honoured with this essay, is but one of many postgraduate students who benefitted from Deist’s expertise, courage, and wisdom.

František Žilka (1871–1944)

František Žilka (1871–1944) At the occasion of the 150 birth anniversary of the first teacher of New Testament studies at the protestant theological faculty in Prague, his contribution to the newly constituted faculty and church is recalled. Žilka followed the call to become a faculty professor after some 23 years in the service of a church minister, and with a systematic plan of basic publications he laid the foundations of the New Testament studies. A major achievement of lasting value is his modern translation of the New Testament, he is also remebered as a learned and both gentle and determined proponent of liberal protestantism in the Czech church environment.

JUDE ON THE ATTACK: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE EPISTLE OF JUDE, JEWISH JUDGEMENT ORACLES, AND GRECO‐ROMAN INVECTIVE. By AlexandraRobinson. Library of New Testament Studies, 581. London: Bloomsbury T&T Clark, 2017. Pp. xix + 251. Hardcover, $114.00.

Religious Studies ReviewVolume 47, Issue 2 p. 232-232 Short Reviews Of Recent Publications: Christian Origins JUDE ON THE ATTACK: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE EPISTLE OF JUDE, JEWISH JUDGEMENT ORACLES, AND GRECO-ROMAN INVECTIVE. By Alexandra Robinson. Library of New Testament Studies, 581. London: Bloomsbury T&T Clark, 2017. Pp. xix + 251. Hardcover, $114.00. First published: 08 August 2021 https://doi.org/10.1111/rsr.15256Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL No abstract is available for this article. Volume47, Issue2June 2021Pages 232-232 RelatedInformation

The Manuscripts and the Study of the New Testament

The Manuscripts and the Study of the New Testament

ECCLESIOLOGY AND THEOSIS IN THE GOSPEL OF JOHN. By Andrew J.Byers. Society for New Testament Studies Monograph Series, 166. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press, 2017. Pp. xvi + 277. Hardcover $105.99.

Religious Studies ReviewVolume 47, Issue 2 p. 231-231 Short Reviews Of Recent Publications: Christian Origins ECCLESIOLOGY AND THEOSIS IN THE GOSPEL OF JOHN. By Andrew J. Byers. Society for New Testament Studies Monograph Series, 166. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press, 2017. Pp. xvi + 277. Hardcover $105.99. First published: 08 August 2021 https://doi.org/10.1111/rsr.15252Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL No abstract is available for this article. Volume47, Issue2June 2021Pages 231-231 RelatedInformation

THE DEATH OF JESUS IN MATTHEW: INNOCENT BLOOD AND THE END OF EXILE. By Catherine SiderHamilton. Society for New Testament Studies Monograph Series, 167. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press, 2017. Pp. xv + 272. Hardback, $105.99.

Religious Studies ReviewVolume 47, Issue 2 p. 228-228 Short Reviews Of Recent Publications: Christian Origins THE DEATH OF JESUS IN MATTHEW: INNOCENT BLOOD AND THE END OF EXILE. By Catherine Sider Hamilton. Society for New Testament Studies Monograph Series, 167. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press, 2017. Pp. xv + 272. Hardback, $105.99. First published: 08 August 2021 https://doi.org/10.1111/rsr.15244Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL No abstract is available for this article. Volume47, Issue2June 2021Pages 228-228 RelatedInformation

The Idea of History and Worldview in N.T. Wright Hermeneutics

N.T. Wright, who represents the New Perspective on Paul, applies philosophical construct of critical realism to the study of the New Testament text. This article explores how N.T. Wright approaches the study of the person of Jesus Christ and his teaching in the context of ancient Judaism, and Apostle Paul’s theology and its application in the early Christian communities. A special attention is paid to the essential works of N.T. Wright, in which he describes epistemology applied to the New Testament studies. This article synchronously explores two main concepts – worldview and history – in the theory of cognition according to critical realism. By studying several methods and approaches to the biblical text (or their totality), a contemporary Christian can choose for herself the method that most illuminates the truth of the meanings of the Gospel of Jesus and Paul’s preaching.

„ … so dass ihr ein Vorbild geworden seid für alle Gläubigen in Makedonien und Achaia” (1Thess 1,7): Übergemeindliche Verbindungen im 1. Thessalonicherbrief

The occurrences, nature and significance of translocal relationships of early Christian communities are discussed in several issues in New Testament studies. This article examines such links in 1 Thessalonians, one of the early letters of the Pauline mission. Translocal links are constituted through the exchange of information and journeys before the composition of the letter; through the authors who are embedded in early Christian communities, serve in this context and represent them; the spread of news in the Christian network; and missionary activities beyond local confines. Translocal links serve to satisfy mutual longing for each other, encouragement, and ethical instruction, and to secure mission efforts. They find expression in prayer for other Christians and in exchanging greetings. Such links play a significant role in the identity construction of new Christ-followers in adverse circumstances. While there is rhetorical hyperbole, the portrayal of such links is at least historically plausible.

Disability and New Testament Studies: Reflections, Trajectories, and Possibilities

This article offers a survey and assessment of the state of New Testament scholarship and disability studies. It provides some critical reflections on the current trends and trajectories of the field and potential futures for it to progress further. While some work has been done on the Catholic Epistles, Revelation, and Paul, the majority of focus has been on the canonical Gospels. Studies often encompass meta-critical, historical, literary, or theological focuses. A number of problems have been raised, such as the question of lived disabled experience in antiquity, anachronism, and ableism within the field itself. Still, there are a number of potential futures for the field, especially in dialogue with adjacent fields to biblical studies like second temple Jewish studies and classics.

The State of New Testament Studies: A Survey of Recent Research

The State of New Testament Studies: A Survey of Recent Research

Qumran, Early Judaism, and New Testament Interpretation

Qumran, Early Judaism, and New Testament Interpretation