Designed to serve as a companion volume to Brevard S. Childs' acclaimed Old Testament Books for Pastor and Teacher, this convenient reference provides authoritative, up-to-date listings of books in the New Testament field for those in the pastoral ministry, as well as for teachers in churches, colleges, and seminaries. Comprehensive in scope, it considers basic exegetical tools, translations, dictionaries, encyclopedias, introductions, histories, theological reference works, and commentaries. Dr. Martin gives priority to books in English, although he cites exceptional works in German and French. This practical book includes a basic list of what the author considers the most valuable current publications along with classic older volumes that should be the nucleus of a good New Testament library. Containing a complete bibliography, it will help readers of all denominations acquire the basic tools to understand and communicate the message of the New Testament.
The Word Biblical Commentary delivers the best in biblical scholarship, from the leading scholars of our day who share a commitment to Scripture as divine revelation. This series emphasizes a thorough analysis of textual, linguistic, structural, and theological evidence. The result is judicious and balanced insight into the meanings of the text in the framework of biblical theology. These widely acclaimed commentaries serve as exceptional resources for the professional theologian and instructor, the seminary or university student, the working minister, and everyone concerned with building theological understanding from a solid base of biblical scholarship. Overview of Commentary Organization Introduction—covers issues pertaining to the whole book, including context, date, authorship, composition, interpretive issues, purpose, and theology. Each section of the commentary includes: Pericope Bibliography—a helpful resource containing the most important works that pertain to each particular pericope. Translation—the author’s own translation of the biblical text, reflecting the end result of exegesis and attending to Hebrew and Greek idiomatic usage of words, phrases, and tenses, yet in reasonably good English. Notes—the author’s notes to the translation that address any textual variants, grammatical forms, syntactical constructions, basic meanings of words, and problems of translation. Form/Structure/Setting—a discussion of redaction, genre, sources, and tradition as they concern the origin of the pericope, its canonical form, and its relation to the biblical and extra-biblical contexts in order to illuminate the structure and character of the pericope. Rhetorical or compositional features important to understanding the passage are also introduced here. Comment—verse-by-verse interpretation of the text and dialogue with other interpreters, engaging with current opinion and scholarly research. Explanation—brings together all the results of the discussion in previous sections to expose the meaning and intention of the text at several levels: (1) within the context of the book itself; (2) its meaning in the OT or NT; (3) its place in the entire canon; (4) theological relevance to broader OT or NT issues. General Bibliography—occurring at the end of each volume, this extensive bibliographycontains all sources used anywhere in the commentary.
John Hayes and Carl Holladay have thoroughly revised and expanded this best-selling textbook, adding new chapters on emerging methods of interpretation and the use of computer technology for exegesis. All bibliographies have been updated, and Scripture has been converted to the NRSV. This new edition retains the features of the early editions: a minimum of technical terms, solid introductory guidelines in exegetical methods, and a valuable presentation of exegetical theory and practice. It is ideal for general introductory exegesis courses, introductions to the Old and New Testaments, and introduction to preaching, as well as for pastors and lay leaders.
Sunday School Teacher Elmer L. Towns and Pastor Stan Toler give us a visionary look at the Sunday School of the future-and definitely like what they see. That's provided, of course, we begin today to build the Sunday Schools that will revitalize the Church and thereby ensure its long-term growth. This companion to What Every Sunday School Teacher Should Know is a practical, exciting wake-up call for every pastor who has a nagging notion that the Sunday School program is not the dynamic catalyst for growth that it should be.
A Guide to Biblical Commentaries and Reference Works, by John F. Evans, summarizes and briefly analyzes all recent and many older commentaries on each book of the Bible, giving insightful comments on the approach of each commentary and its interpretive usefulness especially for evangelical interpreters of the Bible. A Guide to Biblical Commentaries and Reference Works is essentially an annotated bibliography of hundreds of commentators. More scholarly books receive a longer, more detailed treatment than do lay commentaries, and highly recommended commentaries have their author’s names in bold. The author keeps up on the publication of commentaries and intends to update this book every three to four years.
Ordained ministry, says Willimon, is a gift of God to the church--but that doesn't mean that it is easy. Always a difficult vocation, changes in society and the church in recent years have made the ordained life all the more complex and challenging. Is the pastor primarily a preacher, a professional caregiver, an administrator? Given the call of all Christians to be ministers to the world, what is the distinctive ministry of the ordained? When does one's ministry take on the character of prophet, and when does it become that of priest? What are the special ethical obligations and disciplines of the ordained? In this book, Willimon explores these and other central questions about the vocation of ordained ministry. He begins with a discussion of who pastors are, asking about the theological underpinnings of ordained ministry, and then moves on to what pastors do, looking at the distinctive roles the pastor must fulfill. The book also draws on great teachers of the Christian tradition to demonstrate that, while much about Christian ministry has changed, its core concerns--preaching the word, the care of souls, the sacramental life of congregations--remains the same. Ordained ministry is a vocation to which we are called, not a profession that we choose. To answer that call is to open oneself to heartache and sometimes hardship; yet, given the one who calls, it is to make oneself available to deep and profound joy as well.
Second Edition The republishing of the New Testament TransLine has given me the opportunity to fix all the typos that have been brought to my attention. I give thanks to all who helped by pointing out these things. In addition, I have produced the forthcoming Disciples Literal New Testament (tentative title), which is a simplified version of this book, about one third its size. It is the same translation found in this volume, but now presented in paragraph format (no outline), with interpretive section headings and a few notes. Moving the translation to paragraph format required changes to the punctuation, and these are now incorporated into this volume as well. Some improvements to the outline structure of The New Testament TransLine were also made as an outcome of viewing the text in paragraphs. May God bless you as you study His Word, and may God use these two works according to His good pleasure. In contradiction to the tenor and direction of our current world, the Word of God will stand forever as objective truth corresponding to true reality from God's point of view. It is not truth for me, or true because it works for me, but it is truth from God, and therefore truth for everyone. Michael Magill April 2008
The authors of this book have combined years of expertise and devotion to Scripture to provide a truly unique volume that sets forth concise, logical, practical guidelines for discovering the truth in God's Word. Ten years after its initial publication, the authors now have thoroughly updated it in light of the latest scholarship. "This is a remarkably comprehensive study of the whole area of biblical interpretation. Thoroughly evangelical, it also interacts with nonevangelical interpretational stances. No other volume available on biblical interpretation does so much so well."- Douglas Stuart, Professor of Old Testament, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary
