Eerdmans Summer and Fall Books

Eerdmans has recently updated their ‘coming soon‘ section of their website.  They have their book releases now from July to October (in the run up to SBL, no doubt!).

Here are some interesting items

Deliverance of God: An Apocalyptic Rereading of Justification in Paul (July) – Douglas Campbell

In this scholarly book Douglas Campbell pushes beyond both “Lutheran” and “New” perspectives on Paul to a noncontractual, “apocalyptic” reading of many of the apostle’s most famous—and most troublesome—texts.

Campbell holds that the intrusion of an alien, essentially modern, and theologically unhealthy theoretical construct into the interpretation of Paul has produced an individualistic and contractual construct that shares more with modern political traditions than with either orthodox theology or Paul’s first-century world. In order to counteract that influence, Campbell argues that it needs to be isolated and brought to the foreground before the interpretation of Paul’s texts begins. When that is done, readings free from this intrusive paradigm become possible and surprising new interpretations unfold.

Jesus Research: An International Perspective (July)-  eds. J. Charlesworth and Petr Pokorny

In this collection twelve international scholars focus on current issues in historical Jesus research by seeking to understand Jesus in his world. Each writer examines different aspects of Jesus’ life and thought both in their historical and geographical setting and also within a religious and cultural context, bringing insight and understanding into Jesus and his world.

Contributors:

• James H. Charlesworth
• Carsten Claussen
• Craig A. Evans
• Klaus Haacker
• Tom Holmén
• Rudolf Hoppe
• Ulrich Luz
• Petr Pokorný
• Stanley Porter
• Brian Rhea
• Jan Roskovec
• Jens Schröter
• Jonathan Soyars
• Gerd Thiessen

Michael Wolter

The Gospel of Matthew: A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary (July)- Craig Keener.

Fundamentals of New Testament Greek (July) Stanley Porter, Jeffrey Reed, and Matthew O’Donnell

This first-year Greek textbook provides a comprehensive introduction to the grammar and vocabulary of the Greek New Testament. It discusses all the forms and basic syntax of Koine Greek, complete with extensive paradigms, examples, and explanations. Porter, Reed, and O’Donnell’s Fundamentals of New Testament Greek features pedagogically sound and linguistically informed techniques of language instruction. The volume introduces the individual words and grammatical details of Greek, sensitive to their frequency of use in the New Testament, reinforcing for students the elements that they will most often encounter. Grammatical forms, including the less common ones, are analyzed and explained in detail, often with illustrative examples from the Greek New Testament. The authors include complete paradigms and give numerous examples; the vocabulary list includes nearly one thousand words, which are introduced throughout the book’s thirty chapters.

Students who complete this text will be able to move directly into Greek exegesis courses and more advanced Greek-language courses. Fundamentals of New Testament Greek will prove invaluable for gaining a thorough foundational understanding of New Testament Greek, including full exposure to the formation, accenting, and semantics of its complex verbal system.

The First and Second Letter to the Thessalonians (NICNT; July) Gordon Fee

In this commentary Gordon Fee aims first and foremost to offer a fresh exposition of the text of 1 and 2 Thessalonians. He shows the reader what is in the biblical text, what the text meant in the first century, and what it means now. Fee reveals the logic of each argument or narrative before moving on to the details of each verse, and he concludes each section with a theological-practical reflection on the meaning of the text today. Among other things, Fee explores the occasion for writing for each epistle, restoring 2 Thessalonians to the place it deserves as a full companion to the first letter, rather than merely a tagalong to 1 Thessalonians.

The Letter to the Philippians (Pillar; Sept.) G. Walter Hansen

In this clear, concise exegetical commentary, G. Walter Hansen offers rich exposition of the text of Philippians as well as wisdom and maturity in its application. In so doing he emphasizes partnership — the social and corporate dimensions of community — in the progress of the gospel.

“With themes and emotions so varied, the letter to the Philippians needs a commentator with a sure grasp and a warm heart. . . . Hansen writes with admirable clarity and simplicity, even when he is unpacking notoriously complex matters.”
— D. A. Carson (from the preface)

The Historical Jesus of the Gospels (October/Nov.) Craig Keener

The earliest substantive sources available for historical Jesus research are in the Gospels themselves; when interpreted in their early Jewish setting, their picture of Jesus is more coherent and plausible than are the competing theories offered by many modern scholars. So argues Craig Keener in The Historical Jesus of the Gospels.

In exploring the depth and riches of the material found in the Synoptic Gospels, Keener shows how many works on the historical Jesus emphasize just one aspect of the Jesus tradition against others, but a much wider range of material in the Jesus tradition makes sense in an ancient Jewish setting. Keener masterfully uses a broad range of evidence from the early Jesus traditions and early Judaism to reconstruct a fuller portrait of the Jesus who lived in history.

Engaging Economics: New Testament Scenarios and Early Christian Responses (Oct/Nov.) eds. Bruce Longenecker and Kelly Liebengood

Engaging Economics exposes economic dimensions of the theology of the early Jesus movement, as reflected both in the texts of the New Testament and in the reception of those texts within the patristic era. Under these two considerations, the contributions demonstrate that an economic dimension was an integral component of this early movement and indicate how, in later centuries, that economic dimension was either further developed or ignored altogether.