The New Testament: A Historical Introduction to the Early Christian Writings / Edition 2

by Bart D. Ehrman

Overview

Featuring vibrant full color throughout, this new edition of Bart Ehrman's highly successful introduction approaches the New Testament from a consistently historical and comparative perspective, emphasizing the rich diversity of the earliest Christian literature. Rather than shying away from the critical problems presented by these books, Ehrman addresses the historical and literary challenges they pose, showing why scholars continue to argue over such significant issues as how the books of the New Testament came into being, when they were written (and by whom), what they mean, how they relate to contemporary Christian and non-Christian literature, and how they came to be collected into the canon of scripture that we now call the New Testament. Distinctive to this study is its unique focus on the historical, literary, and religious milieux of the Greco-Roman world, including early Judaism. As part of its historical orientation, the book also discusses works by other Christian writers who were roughly contemporary with the New Testament, such as the Gospel of Thomas, the Apocalypse of Peter, and the letters of Ignatius. The text is enhanced by maps, timelines, an extensive text box program, and more than one hundred photos.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780195126396
Publisher:	Oxford University Press, USA
Publication date:	10/28/1999
Edition description:	Older Edition
Pages:	508
Product dimensions:	9.25(w) x 7.50(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Bart D. Ehrman is James A. Gray Distinguished Professor of Religious Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He has written or edited more than twenty-nine books, including five New York Times best sellers. His publications include After the New Testament, Second Edition (OUP, 2014), The Bible (OUP, 2013), Forgery and Counterforgery (OUP, 2013), and The Orthodox Corruption of Scripture, Second Edition (OUP, 2011).

Table of Contents

Each chapter ends with a "Take a Stand" section.
Boxes
Maps, Time Lines, and Diagrams
Preface
Notes on Suggestions for Further Reading
Resources for Instructors and Students
Credits
Master Time Line
INTRODUCTION: WHY STUDY THE NEW TESTAMENT?
1. WHAT IS THE NEW TESTAMENT? THE EARLY CHRISTIANS AND THEIR LITERATURE
The Diversity of Early Christianity
The New Testament Canon of Scripture
Implications for Our Study
Excursus: Some Additional Reflections: The Historian and the Believer
2. DO WE HAVE THE ORIGINAL NEW TESTAMENT?
Publishing Books: Now and Then
How Can We Know if We Have an Ancient Author's Actual Words?
What Manuscripts of the New Testament Do We Have? The Good News and Bad News
A Concrete Example
Accidental Mistakes
Intentional Errors
Criteria for Establishing the Text
3. THE GRECO-ROMAN WORLD OF EARLY CHRISTIAN TRADITIONS
The Problem of Beginnings
One Remarkable Life
The Environment of the New Testament: Religions in the Greco-Roman World
4. THE JEWISH WORLD OF JESUS AND HIS FOLLOWERS
Judaism as a Greco-Roman Religion
Political Crises in Palestine and Their Ramifications
The Formation of Jewish Sects
5. THE ORAL TRADITIONS ABOUT JESUS IN THEIR GRECO-ROMAN CONTEXT
Oral Traditions behind the Gospels
Excursus: Some Additional Reflections: The Authors of the Gospels
6. THE CHRISTIAN GOSPELS: A LITERARY AND HISTORICAL INTRODUCTION
The Question of Genre
Biography as a Greco-Roman Genre
The Gospels as Ancient Biographies
7. JESUS, THE SUFFERING SON OF GOD: THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MARK
The Beginning of the Gospel: Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God Who Fulfills Scripture
Jesus the Authoritative Son of God
Jesus the Opposed Son of God
Jesus the Misunderstood Son of God
Jesus the Acknowledged Son of God
Jesus the Suffering Son of God
Jesus the Crucified Son of God
Jesus the Vindicated Son of God
Conclusion: Mark and His Readers
8. THE SYNOPTIC PROBLEM AND ITS SIGNIFICANCE FOR INTERPRETATION
Methods for Studying the Gospels
The Synoptic Problem
The Methodological Significance of the Four-Source Hypothesis
9. JESUS, THE JEWISH MESSIAH: THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MATTHEW
The Importance of Beginnings: Jesus the Jewish Messiah in Fulfillment of the Jewish Scriptures
Jesus and His Forerunner from Matthew's Perspective
The Portrayal of Jesus in Matthew: The Sermon on the Mount as a Springboard
Jesus and the Jewish Cultic Practices Prescribed by the Law
Jesus Rejected by the Jewish Leaders
Matthew and His Readers
10. JESUS, THE SAVIOR OF THE WORLD: THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO LUKE
The Comparative Method and the Gospel of Luke
A Comparative Overview of the Gospel
The Preface to Luke's Gospel
Luke's Birth Narrative in Comparative Perspective
From Jew to Gentile: Luke's Portrayal of Jesus the Rejected Prophet
Luke's Distinctive Emphases throughout His Gospel
Conclusion: Luke in Comparative Perspective
11. JESUS, THE MAN SENT FROM HEAVEN: THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO JOHN
The Gospel of John from the Perspective of Genre Criticism
The Gospel of John from a Comparative Perspective
The Gospel of John from a Redactional Perspective
The Socio-Historical Method
The Gospel of John from a Socio-Historical Perspective
The Author of the Fourth Gospel
12. FROM JOHN'S JESUS TO THE GNOSTIC CHRIST: THE JOHANNINE EPISTLES AND BEYOND
The Questions of Genre and Author
The New Testament Epistolary Literature and the Contextual Method
The Johannine Epistles from a Contextual Perspective
Reflections on the Contextual Method
Gnostics and the Johannine Community
13. JESUS FROM DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES: OTHER GOSPELS IN EARLY CHRISTIANITY
Narrative Gospels
Sayings Gospels
Infancy Gospels
Passion Gospels
Conclusion: The Other Gospels
14. THE HISTORICAL JESUS: SOURCES, PROBLEMS, AND METHODS
Problems with Sources
Non-Christian Sources
Christian Sources
Using Our Sources: Some of the Basic Rules of Thumb
Specific Criteria and Their Rationale
Conclusion: Reconstructing the Life of Jesus
15. EXCURSUS: THE HISTORIAN AND THE PROBLEM OF MIRACLES
Miracles in the Modern World and in Antiquity
The Historian and Historical Method
16. JESUS IN CONTEXT
Popular Modes of Resistance to Oppression
An Ideology of Resistance
Jesus in His Apocalyptic Context
17. JESUS, THE APOCALYPTIC PROPHET
The Apocalyptic Deeds of Jesus
The Apocalyptic Teachings of Jesus
The Apocalyptic Death of Jesus
18. FROM JESUS TO THE GOSPELS
The Beginning of Christianity
Jesus' Resurrection from an Apocalyptic Perspective
Jesus' Death, according to the Scriptures
The Emergence of Different Understandings of Jesus
19. LUKE'S SECOND VOLUME: THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES
The Genre of Acts and Its Significance
The Thematic Approach to Acts
From Gospel to Acts: The Opening Transition
Themes in the Speeches in Acts
Conclusion: The Author and His Themes in Context
20. PAUL THE APOSTLE: THE MAN AND HIS MISSION
The Study of Paul: Methodological Difficulties
The Life of Paul
21. PAUL AND HIS APOSTOLIC MISSION: 1 THESSALONIANS AS A TEST CASE
The Founding of the Church in Thessalonica
The Beginnings of the Thessalonian Church: A Socio-Historical Perspective
The Church at Thessalonica after Paul's Departure
Conclusion: Paul the Apostle
22. PAUL AND THE CRISES OF HIS CHURCHES: 1 AND 2 CORINTHIANS, GALATIANS, PHILIPPIANS, AND PHILEMON
1 Corinthians
2 Corinthians
Galatians
Philippians
Philemon
23. THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO PAUL: THE LETTER TO THE ROMANS
The Occasion and Purpose of the Letter
The Theme of the Epistle
Pauline Models for Salvation
The Flow of Paul's Argument
Conclusion: Paul and the Romans
24. DOES THE TRADITION MISCARRY? PAUL IN RELATION TO JESUS, JAMES, THECLA, AND THEUDAS
Paul in Relation to What Came Before
Paul in Relation to What Came After
Conclusion: Pauline Christianities
25. IN THE WAKE OF THE APOSTLE: THE DEUTERO-PAULINE AND PASTORAL EPISTLES
Pseudonymity in the Ancient World
The Deutero-Pauline Epistles
The Pastoral Epistles
The Historical Situation and Authorship of the Pastoral Epistles
Conclusion: The Post-Pauline Pastoral Epistles
26. FROM PAUL'S FEMALE COLLEAGUES TO THE PASTOR'S INTIMIDATED WOMEN: THE OPPRESSION OF WOMEN IN EARLY CHRISTIANITY
Women in Paul's Churches
Women Associated with Jesus
Paul's Understanding of Women in the Church
Women in the Aftermath of Paul
Ancient Ideologies of Gender
Gender Ideology and the Pauline Churches
27. CHRISTIANS AND JEWS: HEBREWS, BARNABAS, AND LATER ANTI-JEWISH LITERATURE
Early Christian Self-Definition
Continuity and Superiority: The Epistle to the Hebrews
Discontinuity and Supremacy: The Epistle of Barnabas
Conclusion: The Rise of Christian Anti-Judaism
28. CHRISTIANS AND PAGANS: 1 PETER, THE LETTERS OF IGNATIUS, THE MARTYRDOM OF POLYCARP, AND LATER APOLOGETIC LITERATURE
The Persecution of the Early Christians
Christians in a Hostile World: The Letter of 1 Peter
Christians Sentenced to Death: The Letters of Ignatius
Christians before the Tribunal: The Martyrdom of Polycarp
Christians on the Defensive: The Later Apologetic Literature
29. CHRISTIANS AND CHRISTIANS: JAMES, THE DIDACHE, POLYCARP, 1 CLEMENT, JUDE, AND 2 PETER
The Epistle of James
TheDidache
Polycarp's Letter to the Philippians
1 Clement
Jude
2 Peter
Conclusion: Conflicts within the Early Christian Communities
30. CHRISTIANS AND THE COSMOS: THE REVELATION OF JOHN, THE SHEPHERD OF HERMAS, AND THE APOCALYPSE OF PETER
Introduction: The End of the World and the Revelation of John
The Content and Structure of the Book of Revelation
The Book of Revelation from a Historical Perspective
Apocalyptic Worldviews and Apocalypse Genre
The Revelation of John in Historical Context
The Shepherd of Hermas
The Apocalypse of Peter
Glossary of Terms
Index

Editorial Reviews

"This is the best New Testament intro book for college students, hands down."—Yonder Moynihan Gillihan, Boston College

"Ehrman does a great job giving historical, religious, social, and literary background and also demonstrating various methodologies for students."—Tim Vivian, California State University, Bakersfield

"The New Testament is truly a remarkable accumulation of scholarship. Ehrman's ability to convey a message to students, of all levels, is unsurpassed by any other secondary source or textbook."—Randall W. Holste, Wake Technical Community College

From the Publisher