I’m going to level with you, I love teaching Greek, but real NT Greek buffs talk in such a strange technical language that I have nearly given up trying to follow the latest discussions. Thankfully – and mercifully – Constantine “Con” Campbell has come to the rescue with his new book Advances in the Study of Greek: New Insights for Reading the New Testament (Zondervan 2015). Campbell introduces non-experts to the terminology and concepts that are debated and discussed in the study of NT... Read more

Already Published Joseph Hellerman, Philippians (Exegetical Guide to the Greek New Testament, B&H) – This is more than just a grammar/syntax commentary; Hellerman is widely respected for his socio-historical knowledge of Roman Philippi. I can see seminary/grad-level exegesis courses putting this commentary to good use! James Edwards, The Gospel according to Luke (Pillar, Eerdmans) – Edwards has already written the Mark volume in the Pillar series. This is a well-researched and well-written commentary. Edwards has an interest in the early reception of Luke which comes... Read more

When I lived in England, it was always a highlight of my year to go to the British New Testament Society conference. This year, 2015, it is in Edinburgh and I saw today through Facebook that Prof. Andrew Lincoln was honored with a Festschrift  – and well-deserved! Here are the details: Conception, Reception, and the Spirit: Essays in Honor of Andrew T. Lincoln (ed. J. Gordon McConville and Lloyd K. Peterson; Cascade Books. Eugene, OR, 2015). Introduction | xiii —J.... Read more

The Sept 2015 issue of Journal for the Study of the New Testament is on one of my favorite themes – the use of the OT in the NT. Contributors to this issue include Leroy Huizenga, Craig Evans, Gert Steyn, Rikki Watts, Timothy H. Lim, and Susan Docherty. Also, Paul Foster offers a strong critique of those attracted to Richard Hays’ approach to intertextuality – Foster is wary of the detection of echoes and allusions of OT texts in the NT,... Read more

My article with Priscilla Papers was published this summer: “Teach Us, Mary: The Authority of Women Teachers in the Church in Light of the Magnificat” (Luke 1:46-55)” When it comes to hierarchalists urging that women do not have teaching authority in the church, the go-to passage tends to be 1 Tim 2:11-15. In fact, when I contacted a pastor once to see what their church thought about women in ministry, he simply told me to read 1 Tim 2 to understand... Read more

The latest issue of Interpretation is on economic justice (Oct 2015) “The Justice Imperative in Scripture” (Samuel L Adams) “You Shall Not Bow Down and Serve Them: Economic Justice in the Bible” (Richard Horsley) “How Economic Inequity is a Theological and Moral Issue” (Douglas Hicks) “Poverty, Politics, and Faithful Witness in the Age of Humanitarianism” (Luke Bretherton) Sermons by folks like Michael Barram and Warren Carter. In the reviews Todd Penner reviews Joel Green and Lee Martin McDonald’s (edited) The World of the... Read more

I have the privilege of serving on the board of the Institute for Biblical Research, and each year we provide an academic program on the Friday night of the beginning of SBL. This year we are honored to have Dr. Craig Bartholomew (Redeemer Univ College) as our keynote speaker on the subject “Old Testament Origins and the Question of God.” Responses will come from Dr. Sandra Richter (Wheaton) and Prof. N.T. Wright (St Andrews). Everyone is welcome whether you are... Read more

Over the summer, Mark Boda published a new book entitled Return to Me: A Biblical Theology of Repentance (IVP, 2015). Boda is a well-respected OT scholar at McMaster Divinity College. About nine months ago or so, Boda kindly sent me a copy of the manuscript because I was working on research related to this subject. I was very impressed with his work. Firstly, I value that he allows for different parts of Scripture to have their own nuances regarding repentance. Secondly, I... Read more

Yesterday I assembled a comfy IKEA chair in my office, so I wanted to have a sit-down and do some reading. I read through Gary Burge’s new book Mapping Your Academic Career: Charting the Course of a Professor’s Life (IVP, 2015). This book helps professors at all stages (but I would say especially those in early years) think about who they are, how they exist in their academic world, and it helps them plan for the future in terms of success and... Read more

Kudos to John Byron and Joel Lohr on editing a nice new little book called I (Still) Believe: Leading Biblical Scholars Share Their Stories of Faith and Scholarship (Zondervan, 2015). This book contains short autobiographical essays by respected scholars such as James D.G. Dunn, Walter Moberly, Ellen Davis, Patrick Miller, Beverly Gaventa, Gordon Fee, Richard Bauckham and Morna Hooker (18 total). As far as I know, none of these scholars blog (am I right, John?), but if they did, this is... Read more