Carl R. Holladay

This is a beginner's guide to biblical exegesis, providing exegetical methods, practices, and theories. This book provides simple, helpful information and guidance about doing exegesis, without being overly prescriptive; succinctly introduces students to various methods; provides basic bibliographies that take students beyond an introductory discussion; and emphasizes exegesis as an everyday activity based on commonsense principles rather than as an esoteric enterprise. This revised edition of this perennially best-selling textbook includes discussions of emerging methods of interpretation aimed at a contemporary audience. Several chapters have been updated and improved, and readers will find an incisive new chapter on exegesis with a focus on identity and advocacy. Holladay has also written a new concluding chapter on exegesis as the art of seeing. Bibliographies are updated, and a helpful glossary is included in this new edition.

Like Philo and Josephus, as well as those who earlier produced the Septuagint and the Hellenistic Jewish fragmentary texts, the writers of the New Testament were Jews writing in Greek. They may have been articulating and promoting a particular form of Jewish messianism that eventually became a distinctive form of religious belief, but in the first and early second centuries, those Christ-followers who were writing in various genres operated with many of the same assumptions as their Jewish counterparts in the land of Israel and in other places such as Alexandria and Rome. This collection of essays, spanning the scholarly career of Carl R. Holladay, investigates the Hellenistic Jewish writings in their own contexts and explores how they illuminate the writings of the New Testament. Included are six new essays on such topics as Hellenistic Judaism, the Beatitudes, and Luke-Acts.

Christian interpretation of the Bible is not a simple task. While finding both its beginning and end in the theological claim that Scripture reveals to us "what God has done in Christ," Christian interpretation demands much more. The interaction between believer and text is also conversation between reader and interpretive community, both ancient and modern. Theological interpretation entails close readings of texts but also a close analysis of contexts—the social and political shape of the Mediterranean world as well as our own. Interpretation requires the interweaving of theology, history, and literature. In Introduction to the New Testament Carl R. Holladay does just that. He roots each of the New Testament's twenty-seven writings in their historical, literary, and theological contexts. A true "Reference Edition," Holladay provides thorough, detailed, and exacting overviews, background material, and textual analysis. Holladay leads readers to consider questions of canon, authority, and genre that shape the formation of the text and the text's formation of the identity, theology, and mission of the church today. This Introduction does not leave its readers stranded in the first century; it also intentionally connects the message of the New Testament to the issues facing its faithful readers today. No stone goes unturned and no issue unexamined—Holladay's Introduction to the New Testament is an essential text for any serious student of biblical interpretation.

Christian interpretation of the Bible is not a simple task. While finding both its beginning and end in the theological claim that Scripture reveals to us ""what God has done in Christ,"" Christian interpretation demands much more. The interaction between believer and text is also conversation between reader and interpretive community, both ancient and modern. Theological interpretation entails close readings of texts but also a close analysis of contexts - the social and political shape of the Mediterranean world as well as our own. Interpretation requires the interweaving of theology, history, and literature. In Introduction to the New Testament Carl R. Holladay does just that. He roots each of the New Testament's twenty-seven writings in their historical, literary, and theological contexts. A true ""Reference Edition,"" Holladay provides thorough, detailed, and exacting overviews, background material, and textual analysis. Holladay leads readers to consider questions of canon, authority, and genre that shape the formation of the text and the text's formation of the identity, theology, and mission of the church today. This Introduction does not leave its readers stranded in the first century; it also intentionally connects the message of the New Testament to the issues facing its faithful readers today. No stone goes unturned and no issue unexamined - Holladay's Introduction to the New Testament is an essential text for any serious student of biblical interpretation.

Highly respected scholar Carl R. Holladay offers an in-depth critical commentary on the book of Acts in this new work from the acclaimed New Testament Library series. Holladay offers a theological, contextual, and literary interpretation, paying attention to Acts as a rich narrative that accounts for the development of the early Christian church. He sees Luke's literary style as an expression of its theological purpose. Holladay writes, "Convinced that Jesus' life and death and the emergence of the early Christian movement occurred under divine guidance and continued the biblical story by fulfilling God's ancient promises, Luke decided to incorporate them into a grandly conceived narrative told in a dignified yet dramatic style. Acts reflects the close relationship between medium and message, yet it also illustrates how the medium is the message." Holladay's commentary is theologically rich and steeped in narrative analysis that understands the high level of literary style as an expression of the theological content and the telling of the Christian origin. The New Testament Library series offers authoritative commentary on every book and major aspect of the New Testament, providing fresh translations based on the best available ancient manuscripts, critical portrayals of the historical world in which the books were created, careful attention to their literary design, and a theologically perceptive exposition of the biblical text. The contributors are scholars of international standing. The editorial board consists of C. Clifton Black, Princeton Theological Seminary; M. Eugene Boring, Brite Divinity School; and John T. Carroll, Union Presbyterian Seminary.

Highly respected scholar Carl R. Holladay offers an in-depth critical commentary on the book of Acts in this new work from the acclaimed New Testament Library series. Holladay offers a theological, contextual, and literary interpretation, paying attention to Acts as a rich narrative that accounts for the development of the early Christian church. He sees Luke’s literary style as an expression of its theological purpose. Holladay writes, "Convinced that Jesus’ life and death and the emergence of the early Christian movement occurred under divine guidance and continued the biblical story by fulfilling God’s ancient promises, Luke decided to incorporate them into a grandly conceived narrative told in a dignified yet dramatic style. Acts reflects the close relationship between medium and message, yet it also illustrates how the medium is the message." Holladay's commentary is theologically rich and steeped in narrative analysis that understands the high level of literary style as an expression of the theological content and the telling of the Christian origin. The New Testament Library series offers authoritative commentary on every book and major aspect of the New Testament, providing fresh translations based on the best available ancient manuscripts, critical portrayals of the historical world in which the books were created, careful attention to their literary design, and a theologically perceptive exposition of the biblical text. The contributors are scholars of international standing. The editorial board consists of C. Clifton Black, Princeton Theological Seminary; M. Eugene Boring, Brite Divinity School; and John T. Carroll, Union Presbyterian Seminary.

Boundless Love provides a detailed survey of the scholarship on Luke 15:11-32, the parable of the Prodigal Son—arguably the best loved and most familiar of Jesus' parables. Readers will find key insights regarding the teachings of the parable from leading experts on the Gospels including William Barclay, Kenneth Bailey, Fred Craddock, Luke Timothy Johnson, Henri Nouwen, Pheme Perkins, and N. T. Wright. Part I of this volume offers students of the Bible a firm grasp on the scholarly consensus regarding the parable's historical, literary, and theological contexts, as well as its wide-ranging applicability in today's world. Part II focuses on the exploration of the parable's potential contributions in discussions of reconciliation and draws on the insights of authors such as Annie Dillard, Sam Keen, Desmond Tutu, and Miroslav Volf. Boundless Love is thoroughly accessible and will appeal to both general readers and specialists.