Download or read book Satanic Conflict and the Plot of Matthew written by Robert Charles Branden and published by Peter Lang. This book was released on 2006 with total page 188 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Recent gospel studies have capitalized on the advance in scholarship of narrative criticism. Conversely, gospel studies have suffered from a general lack of appreciation for and application of first-century demonology in Judaism. A combination of these two critical tools sheds great light not only on the plot of Matthew but also on the understanding of selected problem passages. The success of this approach makes Satanic Conflict and the Plot of Matthew an indispensable method of gospel criticism."--BOOK JACKET.

Download or read book Deliver Us from the Evil One written by Matthew Jay McMains and published by . This book was released on 2018 with total page 261 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This dissertation asserts that a foundational theme in Matthew's Gospel is the cosmic conflict between Jesus and Satan, and that not only does Matthew develop a theology of the devil, but that this theme is foundational for the plot of Matthew's drama. Chapter 1 indroduces the question at hand, and surveys those works which relate to my thesis. Chapter 2 analyzes the Jewish literature from the Old Testament and the Second Temple period relevant to the cosmic conflict motif to determine if, and in what way, such has affected Matthew's framework. Chapter 3 discusses the human antagonists of cosmic conflict. The antagonists are those characters in the Gospel which at any point in time seem to hinder the ultimate goal of the protagonist. The human antagonists include Herod, the Jewish leaders, the disciples, Judas, and Pilate. Chapter 4 then discusses the non-human antagonists in Matthew. These include demons, disease, and Satan. Chapter 5, on the other hand, analyzes the protagonists of Matthew's Gospel, including the magi, God the Father, the Holy Spirit, angels, and the disciples. Chapter 6 examines Matthew's plot in light of cosmic conflict. This chapter demonstrates how a recognition of the pervasiveness of this theme in Matthew helps one better understand Matthew's narrative plot. I further argue that three texts are essential to Matthew's narrative framework: 4:1-11; 12:22-32; and 28:16-20. This chapter shows how Matthew's narrative weaves in and out of these three texts into a narrative web with cosmic conflict at its center. Finally, chapter 7 offers a summary of the work as a whole that a robust theology of cosmic conflict is present in Matthew's Gospel.

Download or read book For I Was Hungry and You Gave Me Food written by Carol B. Wilson and published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. This book was released on 2014-02-17 with total page 312 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the first century, endemic food shortages left 25 percent of the population below subsistence level and another 30 percent at risk of slipping below subsistence. In the face of such serious food shortages, the Gospel of Matthew advocates for a society in which all people can have access to sufficient food. Matthew critiques first-century practices and attitudes of both aristocrats and peasants that helped or hindered that goal. It does this by depicting Jesus teaching and performing positive practices that provided the Matthean community with an example to emulate, as well as condemning some negative practices and attitudes. For I Was Hungry and You Gave Me Food provides a pragmatic lens and a new descriptive paradigm of food access in the first century. The perspective and model are useful for analyzing passages concerned with life-and-death issues of the Matthean community--or situations for any other Christian community, past or present. Should not every person have enough food to sustain physical life?

Download or read book Satan the Heavenly Adversary of Man written by Cato Gulaker and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2020-12-10 with total page 269 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Cato Gulaker employs narrative criticism to explore where the depiction of Satan found in the Book of Revelation is positioned on the axis of two divergent roles. The literary character of Satan is commonly perceived to gradually evolve from the first divine agents in the Hebrew Bible, representing the darker sides of the divine governing of affairs (Job 1–2; Zech 3; 1 Chr 21:1; Num 22:22, 32), to the full-blown enemy of God of the post-biblical era. However, Gulaker posits that texts referring to Satan in between these two poles are not uniform and diverge considerably. This book argues for a new way of perceiving Satan in Revelation that provides a more probable reading, as it creates less narrative dissonance than the alternative of the ancient combat myth/cosmic conflict between Satan and God. From this reading emerges a subdued Satan more akin to its Hebrew Bible hypotexts and Second Temple Judaism parallels – one that fits seamlessly with the theology, cosmology and the overarching plot of the narrative itself. Gulaker explores the functions of Satan in a text written relatively late compared to the rest of the New Testament, but with strong affinities to the Hebrew Bible, concluding that Satan is characterized more as the leash, rod, and sifting device in the hand of God, than as his enemy.

Download or read book Surprised by Faith written by Joy McBride and published by Cambridge Scholars Publishing. This book was released on 2009-03-26 with total page 270 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Surprised by Faith celebrates the 75th anniversary of C. S. Lewis “kicking and screaming” his way into Christianity—his 1931 conversion. Lewis described himself as, “the most dejected and reluctant convert in all England." But a convert, nonetheless, surprised by joy. This volume was inspired by Lewis’s autobiographical account of the life-events which led to his coming to faith—an event that had a profound effect on his work and his relationships. In Surprised by Faith, Lewis’s conversion is explored as both “a rational quest for truth and a romantic quest for meaning.” This collection of essays commemorates Lewis’s conversion, but also celebrates, examines and discusses what conversion means to us as scholars, academicians, and most importantly, as human beings. It’s a kind of conversation about conversion. The conversation’s participants are individuals from a variety of backgrounds who themselves have been converted in the classic Christian sense. Surprised by Faith hopefully will challenge the reader to think more deeply, biblically and theologically about the transformation that takes place in each life that embraces Christ and moves from unbelief to belief. The essays look at the influence of conversion on perspectives as they relate to various disciplines, such as anthropology, poetry, psychology, education, philosophy and culture.

Download or read book Who Created Christianity written by Craig Evans and published by Hendrickson Publishers. This book was released on 2021-10-05 with total page 430 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Who Created Christianity? is a collection of essays by top international Christian scholars who desire to reinforce the relationship that Paul had with Jesus and Christianity. There is a general sense today among Christians in certain circles that Pauls teachings to the early Christian church are thought to be "rogue," even clashing at times with Jesus words. Yet these essays set out to prove that the tradition that Paul passes on is one received from Jesus, not separate from it. The essays in this volume come from a diverse and international group of scholars. They offer up-to-date studies of the teachings of Paul and how the specific teachings directly relate to the earlier teachings of Jesus. This volume explores with even greater focus than ever before the tradition from which Paul emerges and the specific teachings that are part of this tradition. This collection of essays proposes a complementary work to the work of David Wenham and his thesis that Paul was indeed not the founder of Christianity or the creator of Christian dogma; instead he was a faithful disciple and a conveyer of a prior Christian tradition. Key points and features: • Includes essays by well-known Christian scholars such as Craig Blomberg, Alister McGrath, N. T. Wright, Michael Bird, Greg Beale, and more. CONTRIBUTORS: 1. Paul and Jesus: Issues of Continuity and Discontinuity in Their Discussion by Stanley E. Porter 2. How and Why Paul Invented "Christian Theology" by N. T. Wright 3. The Origins of Pauls Gospel by Graham H. Twelftree 4. When Paul Met Jesus: How an Idea Continues to Be Lost in History Past and Present by Stanley E. Porter 5. Paul and the Jesus Tradition: An Old Question and Some New Answers by Rainer Riesner 6. Continuity and Development in the Ministries of Jesus and of Paul by Christoph W. Stenschke 7. Pauls Significant Other in the "We-Passages" by Joan E. Taylor 8. Whose Gospel Is It Anyway? The Glory of Christ in the Prophetic Ministry of Paul according to His "My Gospel" and "Our Gospel" by Aaron W. White 9. David Wenham, "The Little Apocalypse," Pauland Silas by Bruce Chilton 10. The Parallels between 1 and 2 Thessalonians against the Background of Ancient Parallel Letters and Speeches by Armin D. Baum 11. Metanoia: Jesus, Paul, and the Transformation of the Believing Mind by Alister McGrath 12. You Would Not Believe If You Were Told: Eschatological Unbelief in Early Christian Apologetics by Peter Turnill 13. Paul on Food and Jesus on What Really Defiles: Is There a Connection? by Craig A. Evans 14. Gospel Women Remembered by Sarah Harris 15. Women in the Pauline Epistles: Lessons from the Jesus Tradition by Erin Heim 16. Twelve Theses on Matthew and Paul: The Jewish Gospel and the Apostle to the Gentiles by Michael F. Bird 17. Paul and the Paternoster: Some Mainly Matthew Observations about a Pauline Prayer by Nathan Ridlehoover 18. The Rediscovery of David Wenhams Rediscovery: Reflections on a Pre-Markan Eschatological Discourse Thirty-Six Years on by Craig Blomberg 19. Portraits of Jesus and Paul through the Lukan Lens by Steve Walton 20. "Every Sin That a Person Commits Is Outside the Body" (1 Corinthians 6:18b): Pauls Likely Dependence on the Jesus Tradition by John Nolland 21. Jesus Is Lord: The Rhetorical Appropriation of the Teaching of Jesus in 1 Corinthians 5 by Peter Davids 22. The Temple and Anti-Temple at Colossae by Greg Beale 23. Filling up What Is Lacking in Christs Afflictions: Isaiahs Servant and Servants in Second Temple Judaism and Colossians 1:24 by Holly Beers

Download or read book Healing in the Gospel of Matthew written by Walter T. Wilson and published by Fortress Press. This book was released on 2014-12-01 with total page 262 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Although healing constitutes both a major theme of biblical literature and a significant practice of biblical communities, healing themes and experiences are not always conspicuous in presentations of biblical theology. Walter T. Wilson adopts an interdisciplinary approach to the healing narratives in the Gospel of Matthew, combining the familiar methods of form, redaction, and narrative criticisms with insights culled from medical anthropology, feminist theory, disability studies, and ancient archaeology. His focus is the New Testament’s longest and most systematic account of healing, Matthew chapters 8 and 9, which he investigates by situating the text within a broad range of ancient healing traditions. The close exegetical readings of each healing narrative culminate in a final synthesis that pulls together what can be said about Matthew’s understanding of healing, how Matthew’s narratives of healing expose the distinctive priorities of the evangelist, and how these priorities relate to the theology of the Gospel as a whole.

Download or read book Heavenly Imagery and Symbolism in Matthew s Gospel written by Daehoon Kang and published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. This book was released on 2023-11-21 with total page 176 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The present study explores the role of heavenly imagery and symbolism in the Gospel of Matthew. Historical background and narrative criticism are my main methods because the Old Testament and Second Temple Jewish texts form the historical backgrounds for the understanding of Matthew’s heaven and Matthew uses heavenly imagery and symbolism to highlight his main themes in the gospel as a whole. This study investigates Matthew’s distinctive materials and important texts having to do with heaven, exploring their meanings and establishing their roles in each narrative section. Matthew describes heaven as the space where certain events reveal God’s plan of salvation. Heaven is associated with such key matters as revelation and judgment. Each major discourse of Matthew focuses on heavenly imagery with judgment at its end, culminating in the parable of the sheep and the goats (Matt 25:31–46).

Download or read book The Gospel of Matthew vol 1 written by Walter T. Wilson and published by Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. This book was released on 2022-11-29 with total page 513 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What was the original purpose of the Gospel of Matthew? For whom was it written? In this magisterial two-volume commentary, Walter Wilson interprets Matthew as a catechetical work that expresses the ideological and institutional concerns of a faction of disaffected Jewish followers of Jesus in the late first century CE. Wilson’s compelling thesis frames Matthew’s Gospel as not only a continuation of the biblical story but also as a didactic narrative intended to shape the commitments and identity of a particular group that saw itself as a beleaguered, dissident minority. Thus, the text clarifies Jesus’s essential Jewish character as the “Son of David” while also portraying him in opposition to prominent religious leaders of his day—most notably the Pharisees—and open to cordial association with non-Jews. Through meticulous engagement with the Greek text of the Gospel, as well as relevant primary sources and secondary literature, Wilson offers a wealth of insight into the first book of the New Testament. After an introduction exploring the background of the text, its genre and literary features, and its theological orientation, Wilson explicates each passage of the Gospel with thorough commentary on the intended message to first-century readers about topics like morality, liturgy, mission, group discipline, and eschatology. Scholars, students, pastors, and all readers interested in what makes the Gospel of Matthew distinctive among the Synoptics will appreciate and benefit from Wilson’s deep contextualization of the text, informed by his years of studying the New Testament and Christian origins.

Download or read book Masculinities in the Gospel of Matthew written by Kendra A. Mohn and published by Lexington Books. This book was released on 2024-02-15 with total page 245 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Kendra A. Mohn traces how the constructions of nonelite men in the Gospel of Matthew negotiate expectations of elite Roman masculinity. Highlighting wealth, divine service, and dominating control, Mohn shows how the depictions of Joseph, John, Peter, and Judas shape expectations of men in terms of discipleship, power, and leadership.

Download or read book Jesus as the Son of 1 2 Samuel s David written by Marc Grønbech-Dam and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2024-05-23 with total page 358 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Although the Gospel of Matthew emphasizes Jesus as the son of David, no one has systematically investigated how 1-2 Samuel influence Matthew's portrayal of Jesus as the son of David. This work addresses that lacuna and shows how the sustained use of 1-2 Samuel in Matthew evokes the themes of mercy and righteousness as the hallmarks of a proper Davidic shepherd. The book's systematic intertextual and narrative approach offers another way to understand Matthew’s Christology and portrayal of the kingdom of heaven. It helps the reader appreciate the justice-focused nature of Jesus’ rule and its religious and political implications.

Download or read book Matthew written by Mark Allan Powell and published by Presbyterian Publishing Corp. This book was released on 2023-11-14 with total page 375 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This inaugural Interpretation Bible Commentary volume on Matthew by Mark Allan Powell brings theological and pastoral sensitivity to the text, exploring how the Gospel of Matthew might be understood today by readers who receive it as its intended audience. It leads us to understand how the church can embody God’s abiding presence in the world, to explore how biblical ethics can remain relevant for ever-changing situations, to consider healthy interfaith dialogue between Jews and Christians, and to move progressively toward values of compassion, mercy, justice, and love. Powell’s exegesis emphasizes the Gospel’s sustained critique of coercive power and its support for children, immigrants, and other vulnerable or marginalized populations. It also makes an honest assessment of the text’s legacy, exposing unfortunate ways that it has been used throughout history (e.g., to justify Crusades and colonialism, or to sanction sexism, racism, and anti-Semitism). The volume also offers summaries of 17 prominent themes developed throughout Matthew, with cross-references to discussions of individual passages, and provides several excursuses that illuminate special topics such as worship, the Sermon on the Mount, the presence and absence of Jesus, stewardship, and Jewish responsibility for the death of Jesus. Emphasizing sound critical exegesis with strong theological sensibilities, the new Interpretation Bible Commentary series features innovative interpretive approaches that help readers engage the biblical text as a source for participating in the larger social world. These new volumes, written by an array of new and diverse authors, are designed to meet the needs of clergy, teachers, and students by inviting readers into the lively work of careful biblical interpretation for the purpose of faithful exposition. Through its engagement with Scripture, the Interpretation Bible Commentary series illumines our relationship with God, one another, and creation so that readers are propelled with new understanding and energy for fulfilling God’s claims on us in our rapidly changing contexts.

Download or read book Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels 2nd edn written by J B GREEN and published by Inter-Varsity Press. This book was released on 2020-05-21 with total page 1849 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels is unique among reference books on the Bible, the first volume of its kind since James Hastings published his Dictionary of Christ and the Gospels in 1909. In the more than eight decades since Hastings, our understanding of Jesus, the Evangelists and their world has grown remarkably. New interpretive methods illumined the text, the ever-changing profile of modern culture has put new questions to the Gospels, and our understanding of the Judaism of Jesus's day has advanced in ways that could not have been predicted in Hastings's day. But for many readers of the Gospels the new outlook on the Gospels remains hidden within technical journals and academic monographs. The Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels bridges the gap between scholars and those pastors, teachers, students and lay people desiring in-depth treatment of select topics in an accessible and summary format. The topics range from cross-sectional themes (such as faith, law, Sabbath) to methods of interpretation (such as form criticism, redaction criticism, sociological approaches), from key events (such as the birth, temptation and death of Jesus) to each of the four Gospels as a whole. Some articles - such as the Dead Sea Scrolls, rabbinic traditions and revolutionary movements at the time of Jesus - provide significant background information to the Gospels. Others reflect recent and less familiar issues in Jesus and Gospel studies, such as divine man, ancient rhetoric and the chreiai. Contemporary concerns of general interest are discusses in articles covering such topics as healing, the demonic and the historical reliability of the Gospels. And for those entrusted with communicating the message of the Gospels, there is an extensive article on preaching from the Gospels. The Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels presents the fruit of evangelical New Testament scholarship at the end of the twentieth century - committed to the authority of Scripture, utilising the best of critical methods, and maintaining dialog with contemporary scholarship and challenges facing the church.

Download or read book John the Baptist and the Jewish Setting of Matthew written by Brian C. Dennert and published by Mohr Siebeck. This book was released on 2015-09-11 with total page 376 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Although recent discussions on Matthew have emphasized the document's setting within Judaism, these studies have not analyzed how the Jewish figure of John the Baptist functions within this setting. Brian Dennert steps into this gap, arguing that Matthew presents Jesus to be the continuation and culmination of John's ministry in order to strengthen the claims of Matthew's group and to vilify the opponents of his group. By doing this he encourages Jews yet to align with Matthew's group (particularly those who esteem the Baptist) and to gravitate away from its opponents. The author examines texts roughly contemporaneous with Matthew which reveal respect given to John the Baptist at the time of Matthew's composition. The examination of Matthew shows that the first Evangelist more closely connects the Baptist to Jesus while highlighting his rejection by Jewish authorities.

Download or read book Matthew Paideia Commentaries on the New Testament written by Charles H. Talbert and published by Baker Academic. This book was released on 2010-08-01 with total page 400 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this fresh commentary, the fourth of eighteen volumes in the Paideia series, a leading New Testament scholar examines cultural context and theological meaning in Matthew. Paideia commentaries explore how New Testament texts form Christian readers by • Attending to the ancient narrative and rhetorical strategies the text employs • Showing how the text shapes theological convictions and moral habits • Commenting on the final, canonical form of each New Testament book • Focusing on the cultural, literary, and theological settings of the text • Making judicious use of maps, photos, and sidebars in a reader-friendly format

Download or read book Enoch and the Gospel of Matthew written by Amy E. Richter and published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. This book was released on 2012-07-18 with total page 243 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Matthew's Gospel contains material unique to it among the canonical Gospels. What is the background for this material? Why does the writer of Matthew's Gospel tell the story of Jesus in the way he does--including women in his genealogy, telling the story of the birth of Jesus in his particular way, and including the visit of the magi led by a star? Enoch and the Gospel of Matthew shows that the writer of Matthew was familiar with themes and traditions about the antediluvian patriarch Enoch, including the story of the fall of the angels called "watchers," who transgress their heavenly boundaries to engage in illicit relations with women and teach them forbidden arts. The Gospel writer shows that Jesus brings about the eschatological repair of the consequences of the watchers' fall as told in the Enochic legend. This study focuses on Matthew's genealogy and infancy narrative and also has implications for the study of women in Matthew, since it is often through the stories of women in Matthew that the repair of the watchers' transgression takes place.

Download or read book The Gospel of Matthew vol 2 written by Walter T. Wilson and published by Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. This book was released on 2022-11-29 with total page 488 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What was the original purpose of the Gospel of Matthew? For whom was it written? In this magisterial two-volume commentary, Walter Wilson interprets Matthew as a catechetical work that expresses the ideological and institutional concerns of a faction of disaffected Jewish followers of Jesus in the late first century CE. Wilson’s compelling thesis frames Matthew’s Gospel as not only a continuation of the biblical story but also as a didactic narrative intended to shape the commitments and identity of a particular group that saw itself as a beleaguered, dissident minority. Thus, the text clarifies Jesus’s essential Jewish character as the “Son of David” while also portraying him in opposition to prominent religious leaders of his day—most notably the Pharisees—and open to cordial association with non-Jews. Through meticulous engagement with the Greek text of the Gospel, as well as relevant primary sources and secondary literature, Wilson offers a wealth of insight into the first book of the New Testament. After an introduction exploring the background of the text, its genre and literary features, and its theological orientation, Wilson explicates each passage of the Gospel with thorough commentary on the intended message to first-century readers about topics like morality, liturgy, mission, group discipline, and eschatology. Scholars, students, pastors, and all readers interested in what makes the Gospel of Matthew distinctive among the Synoptics will appreciate and benefit from Wilson’s deep contextualization of the text, informed by his years of studying the New Testament and Christian origins.