This is what Theodore of Moseuestia writes about 3:18 in his commentary 3:18 Wives, be subject to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. He orders wives to be subject to husbands. [yeah, that’s it] Read more

To the question, “How would you preach on the household code?” one answer would be, ‘Follow the lectionary readings, and you will not have to do so!” The Revised Common Lectionary omits Col 3:18-4:1; Eph 5:21-6:9… (Andrew Lincoln, NIB Colossians, 658). Read more

Gordon Fee, pushing back against views that try to universalize the Household Codes for all families of all times, makes some fascinating points about how Paul refers to house churches and what implications that might have for how we understand the Household Codes. Is it possible, Fee wonders, that the Household Codes (Ephesians/Colossians) are written to house churches of elite families that may have  required (or expected) more strict regulations regarding authority? It could be that the house churches of... Read more

I have been rather intensely studying the Colossian Household Code as of late in view of my commentary research and in conjunction with the grad class I am teaching on Paul’s prison letters. Recently I stumbled across the FS for David Balch called Text, Image, and Christians in the Graeco-Roman World (PTMS; W&S, 2012). One essay, by Dennis Smith, is called “The House Church as Social Environment” and I found it fascinating. In particular, Smith argues that since the house church... Read more

The June 2012 Expository Times features the second part of a series by Moloney on “Recent Johannine Studies” with a special interest this time in monographs. I love this kind of “state of the discipline” article and Moloney gives clear and fair commentary on trends in recent research (John and history, empire, theology, eye-witness testimony, etc…). Read more

I am currently reviewing a commentary on Luke and because of its incredible length, I am at a bit of a loss as to where the focus of the review should lie. I am, of course, going to discuss introductory matters (purpose, authorship, context, genre, etc..), but what passages and verses are folks most curious about? What are the most pressing exegetical conundrums?   Read more

When I was studying at Durham (2006-2009), our study rooms contained copies of Durham theology dissertations, mostly students of Jimmy Dunn as far as I could tell. Bruce Longenecker’s tall black dissertation was numbered among them. Since his time at Durham, he has distinguished himself as a first-rate NT scholar, first of all in Pauline studies, but also expanding into other areas, including study of the Gospel of Luke. I have had only a couple of opportunities to interact with... Read more

I just finished reading Ben Witherington’s brief historical fiction about Paul and his friends and enemies in Corinth in the middle of the first century (A Week in the Life of Corinth, IVP 2012). While Paul plays an important part in the second half of the book, the story’s main character is a freedman named Nicanor who is in the employ of a Christian house church patron named Erastos. I won’t tell you any more details lest I spoil the... Read more

A hearty congratulations go to my buddy John Goodrich, as his new SNTSMS volume is going to “hit shelves” any day now. The title of his work is Paul as Administrator of God in 1 Corinthians (vol #152). You can pretty much guarantee there is not a man or woman alive who knows more about Paul’s use of the Greek word oikonomos in 1 Corinthians than John! well done, John. Read more

The time is soon-coming for the release of the long-anticipated Old Testament Pseudepigrapha: More Noncanonical Scriptures edited by Bauckham, Davila, and Panayotov (Eerdmans, Nov 2012). [Unfortunately Amazon has the title misspelled…] At more than 800 pages (in 2 volumes), it will certainly be substantive. The attempt was made by the editors to collect non-canonical texts that pre-date the rise of Islam. I am sure this will be one of the hot items at SBL! Read more