R Alan Culpepper

In this new critical commentary for the New Testament Library series, R. Alan Culpepper sets the Gospel of Matthew in the context of the competing Jewish and early Christian voices of the first century, bringing greater clarity to Matthew's own proclamation of the gospel and inviting readers to give up perhaps long-held assumptions about the book. In Culpepper's treatment, Matthew emerges as a Gospel for a Jewish community, distinguishing itself from the Pharisees on one side and other early Christian traditions and leaders, especially Paul and his followers, on the other side. In this framework, Matthew calls his community to faithful observance of the law, a law-observant mission to both Jews and Gentiles, and repentance and the practice of forgiving in preparation for the coming judgment. Accordingly, Matthew takes readers back to an early period, before the separation of Jewish Christians from the synagogues. By taking seriously Matthew's Jewishness, this volume also enables readers to hear the historical Jesus more clearly. Excursuses on Matthew's social setting include Jesus as healer, Sabbath observance, Roman taxation, the Pharisees, the tithes, ancient weddings, and the Sanhedrin, as well as many shorter units on Second Temple Judaism, synagogues, and first-century Galilean society. 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; John T. Carroll, Union Presbyterian Seminary; and Susan E. Hylen, Candler School of Theology, Emory University.

In this new critical commentary for the New Testament Library series, R. Alan Culpepper sets the Gospel of Matthew in the context of the competing Jewish and early Christian voices of the first century, bringing greater clarity to Matthew's own proclamation of the gospel and inviting readers to give up perhaps long-held assumptions about the book. In Culpepper's treatment, Matthew emerges as a Gospel for a Jewish community, distinguishing itself from the Pharisees on one side and other early Christian traditions and leaders, especially Paul and his followers, on the other side. In this framework, Matthew calls his community to faithful observance of the law, a law-observant mission to both Jews and Gentiles, and repentance and the practice of forgiving in preparation for the coming judgment. Accordingly, Matthew takes readers back to an early period, before the separation of Jewish Christians from the synagogues. By taking seriously Matthew's Jewishness, this volume also enables readers to hear the historical Jesus more clearly. Excursuses on Matthew's social setting include Jesus as healer, Sabbath observance, Roman taxation, the Pharisees, the tithes, ancient weddings, and the Sanhedrin, as well as many shorter units on Second Temple Judaism, synagogues, and first-century Galilean society. 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; John T. Carroll, Union Presbyterian Seminary; and Susan E. Hylen, Candler School of Theology, Emory University.

Drawing from Greco-Roman history, Second-Temple Jewish studies, archaeology, the social world of the New Testament, parable studies, and the burgeoning literature on Galilee, The People of the Parables describes life in first-century Galilee as it was experienced by the characters in Jesus' parables. R. Alan Culpepper assesses both primary literature and recent research on Galilee--including important archaeological discoveries--and fashions a new and insightful social history of Galilee, the people of the parables, and the historical context of Jesus' ministry. Culpepper builds this history by elucidating the lives of first-century Galileans featured in Jesus' parables: children, women, daughters, mothers, widows, fathers, sons, landowners, tenants, day laborers, debtors, farmers, fishermen, shepherds, merchants, travelers, innkeepers, masters, slaves, tax collectors, judges, Pharisees, priests, Levites, Samaritans, bandits, and, finally, Jesus. Who these people were--their place in Galilean society, how they lived, socialized, worshiped, and conducted business; how they were educated--is described in straightforward, nontechnical language. Culpepper brings new meanings to the parables for today's readers by shedding light on the people of Galilee in the time of Jesus.

The essays in this volume, which span four decades, represent sustained reflection on the historical setting, narrative devices, and theology of the Gospel of John. Methodologically, the essays develop a narrative-critical approach to the Gospel, producing insights that have implications for historical and theological issues. Thematically, many of the essays explore the Gospel's ecclesiology, especially its vision for the church and its mission. As a collection, this volume provides an introduction to the Fourth Gospel, analyses of major issues (including John's anti-Judaism, relationship to 1 John, irony, imagery, creation ethics, evil, and eschatology), and in-depth exploration of key texts, especially John 1:1-18, 2:20; 4:35-38; 5:1-18; 5:21-30; 10:1-18; 12:12-15; 13:1-20; 19:16-30; 20:19-23; and chapter 21.

About this Book: Gail R. O'Day's Revelation in the Fourth Gospel set the stage for a new literary paradigm in Johannine studies, which has carried over into disciplinary advances in gospel criticism overall. With the addition of eight key Johannine essays and a state-of-the-art introduction by Alan Culpepper, this new publication as Volume 9 in the Johannine Monograph Series advances a fuller appreciation of her important work on John and new-literary biblical analyses overall. From the Preface: What becomes apparent in an overview of Gail O'Day's work is her keen analysis of relations and functions of literary themes and features within the Gospel of John, as they further its rhetorical thrust, elucidating its meaning. Whereas diachronic approaches to John have tended to compartmentalize and divide sections and literary forms, O'Day shows time and again how things worked synchronically within John's story of Jesus, challenging misinterpretations and opening doors to understanding more fully its message. The present collection highlights the dialectics between narrative and theology, time and space, and characters and plot in the Fourth Gospel, clarifying their tensive presentations within this classic narrative.

This collection of essays on John by J. Louis Martyn gathers four additional Johannine essays into a single volume, augmenting the three published earlier in The Gospel of John in Christian History (1978). In addition to the essays published in the third edition of History and Theology in the Fourth Gospel (2003), these two volumes preserve for later generations the complete set of Martyn' published works on John. In a timely way, the publication of this volume follows the 50th anniversary of the publication of History and Theology (1968), which John Ashton regarded as the most important single Johannine monograph since the commentary of Rudolf Bultmann. It also follows the 40th anniversary of the publication of his second Johannine book, which serves as the core of the present volume. --From the Editor's Preface ""J. Louis Martyn's History and Theology in the Fourth Gospel significantly altered the landscape of Gospel studies. The Gospel of John in Christian History now collects Martyn's additional works on the Johannine community, allowing ready access to the further development of Martyn's insights. Alan Culpepper's masterful foreword sets the stage for readers, depicting the situation in Johannine studies prior to 1968 as well as the afterlife of Martyn's work. Students of John--from novices to accomplished specialists--will find far more than glimpses await them in this important volume."" --Beverly Roberts Gaventa, Distinguished Professor of New Testament, Baylor University ""Rudolf Schnackenburg used to say that Johannine studies are like working in a Chinese rice field: every little corner is worked over again and again through the years, so breaking new ground is really a challenge Nevertheless, every now and then, someone does exactly that, deeply influencing the Johannine field for many years to come, and such a person is J. Louis Martyn. His influence on Johannine studies and debates runs deep, covering both historical and theological issues. Introduced brilliantly by Alan Culpepper, this volume, gathering together the remainder of Martyn's essays on John, ensures that valuable 'Johannine intellectual gold' does not disappear in the sands of time."" --Jan van der Watt, Professor of Source Texts of Christianity, the Radboud University of Nijmegen, Netherlands J. Louis Martyn served as the Edward Robinson Professor of Biblical Theology at Union Theological Seminary in New York City until his retirement in 1987. R. Alan Culpepper is Dean and Professor Emeritus at the McAfee School of Theology and Research Fellow at the University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa. Paul N. Anderson is Professor of Biblical and Quaker Studies at George Fox University and Extraordinary Professor of Religion at the North-West University of Potchefstroom, South Africa.

This collection of essays on John by J. Louis Martyn gathers four additional Johannine essays into a single volume, augmenting the three published earlier in The Gospel of John in Christian History (1978). In addition to the essays published in the third edition of History and Theology in the Fourth Gospel (2003), these two volumes preserve for later generations the complete set of Martyn' published works on John. In a timely way, the publication of this volume follows the 50th anniversary of the publication of History and Theology (1968), which John Ashton regarded as the most important single Johannine monograph since the commentary of Rudolf Bultmann. It also follows the 40th anniversary of the publication of his second Johannine book, which serves as the core of the present volume.--From the Editor's Preface

Cornelis Bennema presents a new theory of characterization in the New Testament literature. Although character has been the subject of focused literary-critical study of the New Testament (and a point of connection with "character ethics") since the 1970s, Cornelis Bennema observes that there is still no consensus regarding how characterization should be understood in contemporary literary theory or in biblical studies. Many New Testament scholars seem to presume that characters in Greco-Roman literature are two-dimensional, "Aristotelian" figures, unlike the well-rounded, psychologized individuals who appear in modern fiction. They continue nevertheless to apply contemporary literary theory to characters in ancient writings. Bennema here offers a full, comprehensive, and non-reductionist theory for the analysis, classification, and evaluation of characters in the New Testament.

Beginning with New Testament reports of John as fisherman and extending through the most recent Johannine scholarship, Culpepper gathers stories from church fathers, the apocryphal acts of John, medieval sources, Victorian poets, and nineteenth-and twentieth-century historians of earliest Christianity about the exploits and the death of this apostle. Culpepper's sweeping study examines a multitude of sources, many of which are widely dispersed and not previously available in English. Culpepper reveals images of John that suggest the power of historical tradition and legend. The resulting study is one of the most important sources of information about the development of Johannine legends, as well as one of the most successful efforts to overcome barriers that have traditionally separated New Testament exegesis from the study of the history of Christianity.

The highly popular Sheffield New Testament Guides are being reissued in a new format, grouped together and prefaced by one of the best known of contemporary Johannine scholars. This new format is designed to ensure that these authoritative introductions remain up to date and accessible to seminary and university students of the New Testament while offering a broader theological and literary context for their study. Alan Culpepper introduces the Johannine Writings as a whole, illuminating their distinctive historical and theological features and their importance within the New Testament canon.

In this volume, R. Alan Culpepper considers both the Gospel and the Letters of John. The book begins with a close look at the relationship between John and the Synoptics and a summary of John's distinctive thought and language. The second chapter addresses the fascinating issues regarding the origins of the Gospel and the letters: authorship, sources, and composition. The history of the Johannine community is reviewed in chapter three. Chapter four interprets the plot of the Gospel and prepares the student to read John as literature by providing a brief orientation to narrative criticism. The fifth chapter turns to more traditional concerns: John as theology. This chapter provides a digest of the Christology, theology, and eschatology of John. The sixth through the eighth chapters, the heart of the book, guide the student through a reading of the Gospel. The ninth chapter serves as an introduction to the Letters, noting especially their relationship to the Gospel. Each letter is treated in turn. The final chapter examines the challenges and potential of the Johannine literature as documents of faith. "In previous writings Alan Culpepper has shown himself to be one of the best Johannine scholars of our time. He not only conveniently draws together his research but also shows himself to be an excellent teacher." --Raymond E. Brown