Today St. John’s college was selling old library books (from the college library) and about two dozen people turned up for the ‘opening’ at 10.30 this morning. I didn’t know what to expect (having come from Christian Book Distributors famed ‘warehouse’ sales where you could get new commentaries for under $5). But it turned out that they were getting rid of some really outstanding older books. Here were my great buys: W.C. van Unnik, Tarsus or Jerusalem: The City of... Read more
Since coming to Durham, I have stumbled upon a reference collection that is very valuable for anyone wanting to dive into the world of the New Testament and learn more about the Jewish and Graeco-Roman context. It is ANRW, or, Aufstieg und Niedergang der romischen Welt (Rise and Decline of the Roman World). It is a set of 16 volumes that contains essays from scholars around the world in the areas of classics, Judaism, New Testament, and early church history. ... Read more
I would like to recommend a book I turn to quite often, David deSilva’s Honor, Patronage, Kinship & Purity: Unlocking New Testament Culture. deSilva, a professor at Ashland Theological Seminary (my hometown), is an evangelical and an expert in social-scientific criticism and a wise exegete as well. This book is somewhat of an introduction to the cultural background of the world of the NT, but done in a clear and down-to-earth fashion. Whatever area of NT you are interested in,... Read more
If you love biblical commentaries, as I do, you eagerly anticipate the latest volumes by our favorite authors. Well, I thought you might be interested in knowing what is coming down the pipeline in pauline commentaries (with Acts through in). BTW – I received this info from another commentary-o-phile: parableman. ACTS: Darrell Bock (BEC), Loveday Alexander (Luke-Acts, Black’s), R. Pervo (Hermeneia), Joel Green (NICNT; replacement), Stanley Porter (NIGTC), Carl Holladay (NTL), David Peteron (Pillar), Steve Walton (WBC), Craig Keener (Independent)... Read more
For those of you that honour me by reading my blog regularly or semi-regularly, I thought I would share (as often as I can) resources that I have found helpful. Maybe others (like B. Blackwell) can do the same! So, to start things off, I will mention two. First, when I was in the US over Christmas, I got a hold of the newly released New Interpreter’s Dictionary of the Bible: Vol 1 [A-C] by Abingdon. This volume, covering only... Read more
I received more information about F. Watson’s role. He will be teaching one masters module per year and doing ‘a lot of research supervision’. Also, it is confirmed that Watson is not replacing anyone. He is an additional member of the staff. So, no fears for current and incoming students! If only he were coming in ’07! In other news, C.K. Barrett turns 90 this 4th of May. Morna Hooker will be coming to Durham to give a paper in... Read more
I heard that Bruce Longenecker and Markus Bockmuehl may be leaving St. Andrews. Can anyone verify this? Read more
We have just received word that Francis Watson is joining our NT staff in the fall. Apparently he will continue to work from Aberdeen for a year or so before making the move, but will make trips to visit us from time to time. This is a real boon for our already stellar staff. What could this mean for Aberdeen’s shrinking team of NT scholars??? Read more
Let me preface this post by saying that this is going be one of my more boring comments, so don’t read this late at night or else you may crush your keyboard with your face when you doze off. Ok. When writing footnotes in your doctoral thesis, it is helpful to have a consistent citation style. Personally, I have been trained with the SBL Handbook (and I worked for Hendrickson who sells it!) and I like the fact that it... Read more
The Tyndale House (in Cambridge) is a public research library that specialises in Biblical Studies. It is private in the sense that one must apply for access and it is exclusively used by scholars and research students. Also, it has a strong evangelical heritage. American evangelical scholars will not infrequently spend parts of their sabbatical at the Tyndale House. Some of the staff at the Tyndale House are also, to my knowledge, professors at Cambridge University. How can they help? ... Read more
Crux Sola: Formed by Scripture to Live like Christ
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In