Steve Moyise, prof of NT at Univ of Chichester, is well-known and respected for his work on the use of the OT in the NT. I recently finished his little work on Jesus and Scripture: Studying the New Testament Use of the Old Testament (Baker, 2011). This book is rather unique because it focuses on Jesus’s use of Scripture. Why is that special? Well, when we look at Romans, we can be pretty confident this is Paul’s use of Scripture (as the author), but we... Read more

I am preparing a course for next year on Early Judaism and the New Testament for undergraduate Scripture majors. As of yet, I have taught mostly intro courses and exegesis courses, so this will be a welcome addition. In terms of textbooks, there is a great wealth of resources. Do you have favorite introductory books on early Judaism?? Do share! I will share some of my own thoughts and preferences. When I was in seminary, I did an independent study... Read more

Yesterday, I found the latest issue (22.1, 2012) of Bulletin for Biblical Research in the mail. I was pleased to see articles by my friend Joel Willitts and also my buddy Aaron Sherwood, who studied at Durham when I was there. Joel’s article is a fascinating piece on “Messianism” in Matthew and the Psalms of Solomon. While many NT scholars are quick to contrast the two texts, Joel shows care in recognizing the similarities as well. Aaron offers a discourse analysis on Eph 3:1-13... Read more

There are many introductions on Paul – perhaps too many! However, Patrick Gray (assoc. prof. @ Rhodes College) has a specific interest in his book Opening Paul’s Letters which is revealed in the subtitle: A Reader’s Guide to Genre and Interpretation (Baker, 2012). Personally, I agree with Gray that much bad interpretation happens because readers are not attentive to the roles and purposes of the various genres of NT books (and OT ones for that matter!). It is a short introduction (~150 pp.), but... Read more

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again- I really enjoy reading the journal Interpretation (now published by Sage). It is theologically rich, and I appreciate how often they devote an issue to a biblical text (or set of texts). The April 2012 issue is on the book of Joshua and boasts heavy-hitting contributors such as Dan Hawk and Walter Brueggemann.   Also, I found interesting Frank Matera’s very high praise for Arland Hultgren’s new Eerdmans commentary on Romans –... Read more

April 2012 Expository Times is online (issue 123.7).  Francis Moloney contributes an article examining recent commentaries on the Gospel of John. It looks to be part of a multi-issue series – goodie! Also, the piece by Poirier on Philippians also looks interesting. Read more

Check it out. Charles Trimm, “Recent Research on Warfare in the Old Testament”  Judy Diehl, “Empire and Epistles: Anti-Roman Rhetoric in the New Testament Epistles” Hellen Mardaga, “Hapax Legomena: A Neglected Field in Biblical Studies” Travis B. Williams, “Suffering from a Critical Oversight: The Persecutions of 1 Peter within Modern Scholarship” David M. Miller, “Ethnicity Comes of Age: An Overview of Twentieth-Century Terms for Ioudaios” Read more

Durham University in conjunction with the Department of Theology and Religion will be hosting the conference ‘A celebration of living theology: Engaging with the work of Andrew Louth’ on 9-12 July 2012 at Durham University. The conference aims to celebrate the work of Andrew Louth in the areas of Patristics, both Western and Eastern, Modern Theology and Theology as Life, as well as explore its reception outside the English-speaking world. The plenary papers will be collected into a Festschrift to be published after the conference. When I... Read more

Hat tip to Mike Bird for reporting this: Stan Porter is blogging. He is always worth paying attention to! Read more

Here are some Biblical Studies highlights from the Spring/Summer Baker Academic catalog. Handbook of Women Biblical Interpreters, edited by Marion Ann Taylor. 130 interpreters studied in this ~600 page handbook: Elizabeth Achtemeier, Catherine of Sienna, Julian of Norwich, Phoebe Palmer, Teresa of Avila, etc… Looks interesting! Jonathan Pennington is publishing a textbook called Reading the Gospels Wisely: A Narratival and Theological Introduction (256pp.). This reminds me a bit of Eddie Adams’ recent release on Parallel Lives of Jesus in that both of... Read more