The kind folks at InterVarsity Press have furnished me with a copy of Jesus, Paul and the People of God:  A Theological Dialogue with N.T. Wright.  This book is the product of the 2010 Wheaton Theology Conference, where N.T. Wright and nine other scholars dialoged on the state of scholarship regarding Jesus (Part 1:  Jesus and the People of God) and the state of scholarship regarding the apostle Paul (Part II:  Paul and the People of God). If you’d like to examine the content more deeply, I encourage you see the google preview of Jesus Paul and the People of God.

I was excited to receive a copy of Arthur G. Patzia’s The Making of the New Testament: Origin, Collection, Text & Canon, Second Edition from the kind folks at IVP Academic.  I am always on the lookout for new books relating to scribal practice and textual development, so this book will be a welcome addition to my resource library.  This new edition is an update to the original, which was published in May 1995.  I’ve included the back cover copy below as it gives a nice synopsis of what readers can expect to find in this updated and expanded edition.

The story of the making of the New Testament is one in which scrolls bumped across cobbled Roman roads and pitched through rolling Mediterranean seas, finally finding their destinations in stuffy, dimly lit Christian house churches in Corinth or Colossae. There they were read aloud and reread, handled and copied, forwarded and collected, studied and treasured. And eventually they were brought together to make up our New Testament.

This revised and expanded edition of The Making of the New Testament is a textbook introduction to the origin, collection, copying and canonizing of the New Testament documents. Like shrewd detectives reading subtle whispers of evidence, biblical scholars have studied the trail of clues and pieced together the story of these books. Arthur Patzia tells the story, answering our many questions:

• How were books and documents produced in the first century?
• What motivated the early Christians to commit teaching and narrative and vision to papyrus?
• How were the stories and sayings of Jesus circulated, handed down and shaped into Gospels?
• What do we know about ancient letter writing, secretaries and “copy shops”?
• Why were four Gospels included instead of just one?
• How were Paul’s letters, sent here and there, gathered into a single collection?
• Who decided–and by what criteria–which documents would be included in the New Testament?

The Making of the New Testament: Origin, Collection, Text & Canon, Second Edition is available for purchase from Amazon.com, IVPress.com, and other Christian book retailers.

Many thanks to Adrianna Wright for sending along a copy of The Challenge of Jesus (with DVD) by N.T. Wright.  In this volume, N.T. Wright joins in the quest for the historical Jesus, challenging his readers to both grow in their understanding of Jesus within the context of first century Palestine and to follow Jesus more faithfully in the postmodern twenty-first century.  This special edition includes a fifty-minute DVD Resurrection, that was shot on location in Israel, Greece and England.  IVP offers a free group discussion study guide for the Resurrection DVD.  It is available as a PDF download at IVPress.com:  LINK.  The Challenge of Jesus (with DVD) is available from Amazon.com, IVPress.com, and other Christian book retailers.

Book Details:

• General Editor: Thomas C. Oden
• Category: Reference, Commentary
• Publisher: InterVarsity press (September 2010)
• Binding: CD-ROM
• ISBN: 978-0-8308-2480-9

Recommendation:

• Review Date: 2/6/2011 by Shaun Tabatt
• Rating: Highly recommended

Review:
If you have followed the reference works published by InterVarsity Press over the past few years, you have no doubt noticed that they are making a concerted effort to expose a whole new generation to the writings of the church fathers.  One series that has been an important part of this resurgence is the Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture edited by Thomas C. Oden. My first encounters with the early volumes of this series was during my college days. You could often find one or more of these volumes open on my desk as a trusted source for my exegesis papers and other research. The twenty nine volumes making up the Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture span both the Old and New Testaments as well as the Apocrypha. Given the time and language barrier that exists between today’s reader and the church fathers,  there certainly are gaps that need to filled in as we attempt to learn at the feet of the fathers.  The Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture does an exemplary job of helping to bridge that gap, making the exegesis of the church fathers readily accessible to today’s pastors, scholars, and bible students.

There was clearly a lot of planning and forethought put into the organization and layout of this commentary set.  As I say with any reference work, be sure to read all of the introductory material in order maximize your use of the resource. One important feature to note is that the scriptural text is divided into periocopes. Each pericope is followed by an overview, providing a succinct summary of the patristic commentary that follows. Besides the actual meat of the commentary, there are also many useful features to be found at the close of each volume.  Depending on your level of research and interest, you may well be able to make use of some or all of the following:

• Appendix:  Early Christian Writers and the Documents Cited
• Biographical Sketches
• Timeline of Writers of the Patristic Period
• Bibliography of works in the Original Languages
• Bibliography of works in English Translations
• Author/Writings Index
• Subject Index
• Scripture Index

As a hopeless bibliophile, I often struggle with the question of whether to buy reference works electronically or in print.  If shelf space and budget were both limitless, I would suggest doing both.  The reality of the situation is that this typically is not the case.  The full twenty nine volume Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture set retails for $1450.00 in print and $385.00 on CD-ROM.  The significant cost savings alone is a good argument for picking this set up on CD-ROM.  If there is a particular volume that relates to a focused area of research or study, you may want to consider purchasing that particular volume in print in addition to the CD-ROM version.  For me, that is especially true when it is a volume I want to read from cover to cover.  Besides the cost savings, a second major incentive for purchasing this and other reference works electronically is the ease with which you can search.  In the case of the Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture set, it is available for both LOGOS Bible Software and Accordance.  The third major incentive for the CD-ROM edition is the ease with which you can create footnotes and bibliographic entries for the references you are copying into your papers.  I’m an avid user of LOGOS Bible Software and this feature alone has revolutionized my writing. Having never used Accordance, I am unable to speak to whether or not they offer the same level of convenience when creating footnotes or bibliographic entries. My suspicion is that it is equally as helpful.

Regardless of whether you choose to go with the print or CD-ROM version of the Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture, either one will be a welcome addition to your library. If you are looking for a wonderful birthday, Christmas,  or graduation gift, every pastor, scholar, and Bible student would be greatly blessed by the opportunity to add this resources to their collection.

General Editor Information:
Thomas C. Oden (Ph.D., Yale University) formerly Henry Anson Buttz Professor of Theology at The Theological School of Drew University in Madison, New Jersey, is now director of the Center for Early African Christianity, at Eastern University, St. Davids, Pennsylvania. He is the general editor of the Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture and the Ancient Christian Doctrine series as well as the author of Classic Christianity, a revision of his three-volume systematic theology.

Disclaimer:
This CD-ROM was provided by InterVarsity Press for review. The reviewer was under no obligation to offer a favorable review.

Purchase Options: Amazon.com, Christianbook.com, InterVarsity Press

Although I’ve had it sitting on my desk for a couple of weeks, I finally got around to paging through the InterVarsity Press Spring 2011 New Title Announcement. Below are a few of the titles that looked interesting to me.

The winner for day 12 of Bible Geek Gone Wild’s 3rd Annual 12 Days Before Christmas is:

• Joel Watts (www.thechurchofjesuschrist.us)

Many thanks to Random.org for making it possible to choose fairly. Also, many thanks to Bridge-Logos, Baker Books, Zondervan Academic, Tyndale House Publishers, & InterVarsity Press for sponsoring the prizes for day 12.

Welcome to day 1 of Bible Geek Gone Wild’s 3rd Annual 12 Days Before Christmas.  Today’s contest is sponsored by InterVarsity Press.  Today’s prize pack includes the following:

Reclaiming the Old Testament for Christian Preaching – Edited by Grenville J. R. Kent,
Paul J. Kissling and Laurence A. Turner

This stimulating volume offers guidance for expository preaching and practical suggestions for understanding the message of its diverse literature. A vital final chapter on preaching Christ from the Old Testament is included.

The contributors are internationally respected evangelical Old Testament scholars, from a wide range of church traditions and global regions, who are also active in preaching. They issue a call to use all the Bible’s rich resources in preaching the good news of the kingdom of God.

“This book offers a thorough discussion of the various tasks facing the Christian preacher in proclaiming the gospel from the pages of the Old Testament. Particularly unique among recent treatments of this sort is the fact that each of the contributors is a noted Old Testament professor, scholar and proven preacher in his or her own right.” —John H. Sailhamer, author of The Meaning of the Pentateuch

The Gospel of John: When Love Comes to Town – By Paul Louis Metzger, Foreword by Leonard Sweet, Afterword by Rick McKinley

The Resonate series recovers the ancient wisdom of Scripture and helps us understand how it resonates with our complex world. The stories and insights of each book of the Bible are brought into conversation with contemporary voices of hope and lament–the cultural messages we interact with on a daily basis. The Scriptures become a meeting ground where God speaks to the pressing concerns of our day, and we are confronted in turn with a fresh experience of God’s truth.

In this journey through the Gospel of John, Paul Louis Metzger wrestles with the question of what happens when God, who is love, comes to town and takes up residence among us. For some this new neighbor love is welcome; for others, unusual; for still others, suspect–even dangerous.

We learn from John’s Gospel what it means to be called friends and lovers of God, what it means to put love to death and what it means for love to rise again in our midst and in our lives.

Contest Details
The object of today’s contest will be to answer the questions that follow below. Following the close of the contest, the winners will be contacted via e-mail. There will be two winners in today’s contest, each winning the prize pack described above. Good luck!

This contest is now closed. Winners will be announced soon.

Terms and Conditions
* This contest is limited to residents of the 48 state continental United States.
* Contestants may submit one entry per contest per day.
* The winner or winners will be announced following the close of each contest.
* Prizes will be shipped within several days of the close of each contest.

I was excited to receive my introductory shipment from the IVP book club this past Friday.  The titles I chose are:

In addition to these great books, I got the messenger bag pictured below.

When you do the math, I got $176 in books and a messenger bag for a buck.  I highly recommend you check out the IVP book club and consider taking advantage of their excellent introductory offer.  Click the banner below for details.

If you pay attention to popular news media, you’ve no doubt seen numerous stories related to fall fashion week.  This is where designers showcase their latest clothing line for the upcoming year.  One neglected segment of society with insufficient representation at these events is the BiblioBlogging, seminary attending, original language learning Bible Geek.  Truth be told, we are a diverse bunch of folks, so designing a fashion line with broad appeal to this wide audience is a monumental task.  However, here at Bible Geek Gone Wild we are always up for a good challenge.  While I don’t think we’ll be invited to be a part of the larger fall fashion week festivities just yet, we do hope our grass roots efforts will set some exciting changes in motion and bring us one step closer to the recognition and representation we deserve.  With that said, sit back and enjoy the show….
Welcome to Bible Geek Gone Wild’s first ever fall fashion show.  First up we have Shaun.  He looks like he is ready to walk across campus and do some serious learning.  Shaun’s shirt is made from preshrunk cotton.  It’s short sleeves are perfect for the ongoing fall weather.  The graphic on the front boldly announces LOGOS Bible Software, version 4.  Version 4 has been available for PC for sometime, but will officially be available for Mac on October 1, 2010.  This limited edition shirt comes in either green or blue and is available exclusively from LOGOS Bible Software.  (Click the photo to the left for details on how to order your own Logos 4 t-shirt.)  By the way they sell Bible software too.    In addition to a fine shirt, every student is going to need some sort of backpack or bag to carry all of their books, notebooks, school supplies, etc.  Complimenting Shaun’s ensemble today is a one of a kind messenger bag from InterVarsity Press. This messenger bag has one large zippered compartment accessible from the top as well as a velcro-secured front flap with several pockets for pens, highlighters and the obligatory Greek and Hebrew flashcards.  The built in shoulder strap makes this bag a sensible and stylish choice.  This one of a kind bag is not available in stores.  The only way to get this fine bag is to join the IVP book club.  Not only will you receive five books of your choice for $1.00 plus shipping and handling, you will also receive this attractive messenger bag.  (Click the photo to the right for details on how to join the IVP book club, so you to can get 5 books for a buck and this great messenger bag.)  Chances are you would feel quite foolish if you were caught walking around campus with an empty bag.  It is inevitable that you will either meet up with some fellow students in the library or coffee shop and you will no doubt try to out do each other as you brag about your original languages resources.  Coming out on top in these conversations can be tricky depending on whether your fellow students are Old Testament or New Testament “guys”.  One sure fire way to ensure you will not be left in the dust is to procure a bible that has both Greek and Hebrew.  An excellent choice for beginning language students is A Reader’s Hebrew and Greek Bible from Zondervan. This excellent volume combines A Reader’s Greek New Testament and A Reader’s Hebrew Bible.  Students will appreciate the footnoted definitions for all Hebrew words occurring 100 times or less, Aramaic words occurring 25 times or less, and Greek words occurring 30 times or less.  It is a very handsome looking Bible with a fine-grain Black European leather binding and two marker ribbons.  While we can’t make specific promises, we are quite confident that possessing A Reader’s Hebrew and Greek Bible will make you the envy of all of your fellow students.  (Click the photo to the left for details on how to get your own copy of A Reader’s Hebrew and Greek Bible from Westminster Books.)  As our fashion show comes to a close, we arrive at the final piece of Shaun’s ensemble.  Here at Bible Geek Gone Wild we realize that the Bible software debate is just as heated as that of Mac versus PC.  In the event that the LOGOS Bible Software t-shirt is too much for you to bear, we suggest that you support your Bible software vendor of choice through something a little more personal.  Perhaps through skin art (AKA a tattoo).  As Shaun lifts up his right sleeve, you’ll notice he is sporting a tattooed rendition of the BibleWorks 8 logo.  Just in case you’re not familiar…BibleWorks is an original languages Bible software program for Biblical exegesis and research.  Considering the number of resources in its base package, it is an excellent value offered at a very fair price.  BibleWorks 8 is the official Bible Software of choice here at Bible Geek Gone Wild.  However, we do try to remain teachable, so we’d be open to LOGOS Bible Software trying to change our minds, should they ever be inclined to send a review copy, so we can do a Bible Software “taste” challenge.  You know like the Coke and Pepsi taste challenges from back in the 90′s.    (Click the photo above and to the right to learn more about the stupendous value of BibleWorks 8.)

Well, we hope you enjoyed Bible Geek Gone Wild’s 2010 Fall Fashion Show.  May you look fabulous as you write your book reviews, parse your verbs and serve the Lord!

There are days when it seems like Adrianna Wright, Online Publicity Manager for InterVarsity Press can read my mind.  It all began this past Sunday when I was on a run listening to a recent episode of the White Horse Inn podcast.  In this episode, Michael Horton and the crew interview Graeme Goldsworthy.  At the end of the interview I was thinking to myself that I really need to check out Gospel-Centered Hermeneutics.  Then mysteriously it  just appears on my doorstep two days later.  I’m going to make the assumption that this was just the divine hand of providence at work and not that Adrianna can actually read my mind.  Just to be sure…..  Adrianna, can you tell me what I am thinking right now? 

In all seriousness, Gospel-Centered Hermeneutics:  Foundations and Principles of Evangelical Biblical Interpretation looks like an excellent book.  This title was originally released as a hardcover in March 2007.  The new paperback edition was released this year and is available now.  You can get an idea of the material covered in the book from the table of contents, which I’ve included below:

Part I – Evangelical Prolegomena to Hermeneutics

• 1. The necessity for hermeneutics
• 2. Presuppositions in reading and understanding
• 3. Gospel-centred hermeneutics
• 4. Towards a biblical theology of interpretation

Part II – Challenges to Evangelical Hermeneutics

• 5. The eclipse of the gospel in the early church
• 6. The eclipse of the gospel in the mediaeval church
• 7. The eclipse of the gospel in Roman Catholicism
• 8. The eclipse of the gospel in Liberalism
• 9. The eclipse of the gospel in philosophical hermeneutics
• 10. The eclipse of the gospel in historical criticism
• 11. The eclipse of the gospel in literary criticism
• 12. The eclipse of the gospel in Evangelicalism

Part III – Reconstructing Evangelical Hermeneutics

• 13. Pre- and post-Enlightenment evangelical interpretation
• 14. The gospel and the literary dimension
• 15. The gospel and the historical dimension
• 16. The gospel and the theological dimension, I: the two Testaments and Typology
• 17. The gospel and the theological dimension, II: biblical and systematic theology
• 18. The gospel and contextualization
• 19. The hermeneutics of Christ

Purchase Options:

Amazon

Westminster Bookstore

Direct from Publisher