tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7149476613127173982024-02-06T20:53:32.456-08:00NT and OT commentariesE. van Wijkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02896627319013041491noreply@blogger.comBlogger174125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-714947661312717398.post-38313268184783411802014-10-03T07:52:00.004-07:002014-10-03T07:52:48.142-07:00Review of: John J. Collins, Daniel (Hermeneia), Fortress Press, 1993; in: Biblica<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: NL;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Review in: <i>Biblica 77</i><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">/4 (</span>1996), pp. 560-564</span></span><br />
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: NL;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Review door: Philip R. Davies</span></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: NL;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Gevonden op: </span><a href="http://www.jstor.org/"><span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit;">http://www.jstor.org</span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> (free-beta)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><strong></strong></span><o:p><a href="http://whichcommentary.blogspot.nl/2012/01/welk-bijbelcommentaar-en-waarom.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><strong>BACK: NAAR OVERZICHT</strong></span></a></o:p></div>
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E. van Wijkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02896627319013041491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-714947661312717398.post-55730564838759139002014-01-02T01:15:00.001-08:002014-01-08T04:21:36.869-08:00Review of: David G. Peterson, The Acts of the Apostles (Pillar NTC), Eerdmans, 2009; in: JETS<span style="font-family: inherit;">David G. Peterson<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">, </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: windowtext; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury-Italic; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">The Acts of the Apostles</span></span></i><span style="color: windowtext; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> (Pillar NTC), </span><span style="color: windowtext; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Eerdmans, 2009.</span><span style="color: windowtext;"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Review in: <span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury-Italic; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><em>JETS </em></span><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury-Italic; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">5</span><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">4.1 (March 2011),pp.169-170</span><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Review door: <span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">John B. Polhill</span><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Gevonden op: </span><a href="http://www.etsjets.org/files/JETS-PDFs/54/54-1/JETS_54-1_133-220_Book%20Reviews.pdf"><span style="font-family: inherit;">http://www.etsjets.org/files/JETS-PDFs/54/54-1/JETS_54-1_133-220_Book%20Reviews.pdf</span></a></span></span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">David G. Peterson</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury-Italic; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><em>The Acts of the Apostles </em></span>(Pillar NTC), </span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2009, lv + 790 pp.,
$65.00.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">When I taught my first elective in Acts in the early
1970s, commentaries on the book were slim pickings. Several classic older
volumes were available in reprint, such as Rackham’s and Cadbury and Lake’s
commentary in </span><i><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury-Italic; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">The Beginnings
of Christianity</span></i><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">. Brief contributions
were available, such as Foakes-Jackson in the Moffatt series and Williams in
Harper’s. The most thorough and up-to-date commentary was that of Haenchen. The
situation is quite different now. With the many recent commentary series have
come a number of excellent volumes on Acts, including Barrett’s two volumes,
Bock, Dunn, Fernando, Fitzmyer, Gaventa, Johnson, Larkin, Marshall, Neil, Parsons,
and Spenser. Excellent independent volumes are the 1990 enlarged commentary by
Bruce, Tannehill’s two-volume narrative treatment of Luke-Acts, and Witherington’s
“Socio-Rhetorical” commentary. An important contribution is Jervell’s volume as
Haenchen’s successor in the </span><i><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury-Italic; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Kritisch-Exegetischer
Kommentar, </span></i><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">which is as yet
unavailable in English. Peterson shows no awareness of this commentary or of Conzelmann’s,
which </span><i><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury-Italic; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">is </span></i><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">available in English. Also neglected is Fitzmyer’s Anchor Bible contribution.
Except for a few holes such as these, however, he does reflect a thorough acquaintance
with his predecessors as reflected in this comprehensive and highly useful treatment
of Acts.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Peterson is well qualified to write an Acts commentary.
He has participated in the multi-volume series </span><i><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury-Italic; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">The Book of Acts in its First Century Setting </span></i><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">from its beginning</span><i><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury-Italic; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">, </span></i><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">having
contributed an article in the first volume entitled “The Motif of Fulfillment
and the Purpose of Luke-Acts.” He also served as co-editor with I. H. Marshall
of the sixth volume, which deals with the theology of Acts. Indeed, perhaps the
greatest contribution of this new commentary is its extensive treatment of the
theology of the book. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The introduction to the commentary treats such standard
matters as authorship and date, but also matters more specific to Acts.
Particularly useful are the sections dealing with genre and literary features.
Some standard issues are treated rather briefly, such as the speeches in Acts.
These speeches comprise nearly a third of the entire text of the book and are
the primary source for its theology, and one might expect a more thorough discussion.
This brevity, however, is compensated by Peterson’s thorough treatment of the
speeches in the commentary proper. The same applies to his introductory
comments on the text of Acts. He gives only scant attention to the Western text
of Acts, which is 8% longer than the Alexandrian and Byzantine texts. On the
other hand, he makes frequent allusions to the distinctive Western readings in
the commentary and footnotes. The most valuable portion of the introductory
matters is a 44-page discussion of the theology of Acts. In addition to
considering such standard features as the theology of God, Jesus, the Spirit,
salvation, the church, atonement (or the seeming lack thereof), he also
examines less discussed topics like elements of the magical and demonic in Acts.
The emphasis on theology is continued throughout the commentary, and the introductory
sections are regularly cross-referenced in the commentary proper where applicable.
In addition to the approximately 100 pages of introductory matters, the book concludes
with 64 pages of indices, covering subjects, authors, Scripture references, and
extrabiblical references.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The organization of the commentary is based on the
theme of the progress of the Word of God, which is reminiscent of previous
treatments, such as Haenchen’s emphasis on “the triumph of the Word.” The
emphasis on the Word is combined with a standard geographical outline, which is
obviously supported by the narrative flow of Acts. Peterson develops his
outline around multiple divisions and subdivisions that set forth the text in
brief sections. Every division and subdivision is provided with a summary introduction
that makes the narrative easy to follow for the reader. Sections usually end
with a brief but useful application to the contemporary setting of the church. Interspersed
throughout the commentary are a few brief notes on topics that require extra
attention, including one on the problem of OT references in Stephen’s speech
and one on contemporary application of lessons learned from the Jerusalem
Conference.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Peterson’s methodology is eclectic, not being confined
to any one approach. Overall, he sets forth the meaning of the text with sound
exegesis. He often cites the Greek text in transliterated form, placing it in
parentheses beside the English translation. This is done in an unobtrusive way
that will clarify the translation for those with Greek facility without being
distracting for those with none. The commentary series is based on the </span><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury-SC700; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">TNIV </span><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">translation.
Being a more-or-less “dynamic” and not a literal rendering, it will sometimes
“close the door” on other possible renderings. Peterson does not hesitate to challenge
the </span><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury-SC700; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">TNIV </span><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">when he considers the best translation to be otherwise but always gives
his justification for so doing.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Peterson also uses a narrative-critical approach,
discussing the development of the narrative without using the technical
language characteristic of so many works that use this methodology. For
example, he discusses such things as “narrative asides” and “narrative time” by
noting these features in the text but without using the jargon. He also notes
rhetorical features in the text, but this is confined primarily to the trial scenes,
where the influence of rhetoric is obvious. He does not force rhetorical
categories on non-rhetorical contexts.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Peterson’s commentary provides a balanced discussion
of alternative interpretations to those advanced in the commentary, either in
the text itself or in the footnotes. He does not ride particular denominational
horses. He writes in a clear, easily understood style that is generally free of
technical language. The commentary will serve one well as a general work on the
text of Acts that reflects the best in contemporary scholarship. It will prove
useful to the pastor preparing a sermon on a particular passage, to a teacher
preparing on a limited text or the whole book, and as a textbook for students.
Its treatment of the narrative flow will also make it an excellent guide for anyone
wishing to work through the entire text of Acts.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">John B. Polhill</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: ANECentury; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Louisville, KY</span><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<a href="http://commentariesandreviews.blogspot.com/2012/01/de-onderstaande-commentaren-zijn-van.html"><strong><span style="color: black; font-size: large;">BACK: ADVANCED NT 'ORTHODOX PROTESTANT'</span></strong></a></div>
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<a href="http://whichcommentary.blogspot.com/2012/01/welk-bijbelcommentaar-en-waarom.html"><strong><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">BACK: NAAR OVERZICHT</span></strong></a></div>
E. van Wijkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02896627319013041491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-714947661312717398.post-28205073817313998002013-09-05T04:04:00.001-07:002013-09-05T04:14:14.386-07:00Review of: Jeffrey H. Tigay, The JPS Torah Commentary: Deuteronomy, Jewish Publication Society, 1996; in: Journal of Biblical Literature<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: NL;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Review in: <i>Journal of Biblical Literature </i><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">116/4 (</span>Winter, 1997), pp. 727-729</span></span><br />
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: NL;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Review door: Lyle Eslinger</span></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: NL;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Gevonden op: </span><a href="http://www.jstor.org/"><span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit;">http://www.jstor.org</span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> (free-beta)</span></span></div>
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E. van Wijkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02896627319013041491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-714947661312717398.post-54758109621932963122013-02-21T06:58:00.001-08:002013-02-21T06:58:44.182-08:00Review of: W R. Telford, The Theology of the Gospel of Mark (NTT), Cambridge University Press, 1999; in: Theology Today<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">W </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">R. Telford, </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">The Theology
of the Gospel of Mark</span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> (NTT),
Cambridge University Press, 1999.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Review in: </span><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Theology Today </span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">2000 57: 280</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Review door: </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Brian K. Blount</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Gevonden op: </span></span></span><a href="http://ttj.sagepub.com/content/57/2/280.full.pdf+html"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://ttj.sagepub.com/content/57/2/280.full.pdf+html</span></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">The Theology of the Gospel of Mark<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">By </span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">W</span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> </span><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">R. Telford<o:p></o:p></span></i></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Cambridge,
Cambridge University Press, 1999.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">275
pp. $59.95.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">According
to <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">W. </span>R. Telford, the Gospel of
Mark represents a transitional phase in early Christian literature. The
evangelist’s effort foreshadows the triumph of Pauline gentile Christianity
over the Jesus movement’s earlier Jewish manifestations. Operating according to
the tenets of <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">a </span>research methodology
that he calls “form and redaction criticism, tempered by the insights of
literary criticism,” he attempts to separate Mark’s theological agenda from the
traditional Jewish material about Jesus that came to him. The Jewish Christian
traditions were driven by an apocalyptic eschatology that saw Jesus as <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">a </span>Son of David kind of Messiah who
would, also as Son of Man, appear at the end time and establish God’s kingdom.
In fact, in the traditions, Jesus was primarily identified <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">as </span>the proclaimer of that future kingdom.
In Mark, however, Jesus becomes the “Proclaimed One” in whose person and
ministry that once future oriented kingdom is <i>already </i>present. The
secret of the kingdom about which Mark is so concerned, then, is this: Jesus is
the Son of God in <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">a </span>Hellenistic
rather than <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">a </span>Jewish sense. His person,
his ministry, his miracles are <i>the </i>epiphany of God’s kingdom power in
the present. And he represents that power with the express purpose of saving
humankind. Mark has qualified the presentation of Jesus <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">as </span>an eschatological figure by overlaying the Son of Man’s triumphant
messianism with the divine necessity of his redemptive suffering and death. In
other words, Mark has so thoroughly edited the traditions that he has shifted
the emphasis from <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">a </span>Jewish
apocalyptic eschatology to an epiphany christology and <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">a </span>cross soteriology. Just how Hellenistic is Mark’s Son of God
Jesus? Jesus appears “to the Markan reader <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">as </span>one who no longer has Jewish roots, as one no longer to be seen
through Jewish eyes, as one no longer to be accorded <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">a </span>Jewish identity.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">No
wonder, then, that Telford sees Mark’s reformulation <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">as </span>anti-Semitic. Mark’s negative presentation of the Jewish
leaders no longer represents an intra-Jewish clash of key Jewish players. It
becomes instead an apology for <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">a </span>Hellenized
Jesus whose christological identity and purpose operates against the Jewish
leaders and people who refused to acknowledge it. It is also not surprising
that Mark now looks like the precursor to Paul that Telford believes him to be.
Agreeing with Martin Kiihler’s view of the Gospel <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">as a </span>passion narrative with an extended introduction, he sees the only
real payoff of Jesus’ life coming at the end of it. His ministry hides the
secret of his sonship until that crucial moment on the cross when the purpose
of that sonship is revealed <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">as </span>the
expiation of human sin. “It is this soteriological emphasis, then, this
theology of the cross, the <i>salviJc death </i>of Jesus (Mk 10.45 and Rom.
3.23-5; 5.8-9, 18-19) and the universality of salvation engendered by it (Mk
13.10; 14:9 and Rom. 15.14-21), which bring Mark and Paul into the same
theological orbit.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Telford’s
book, on the whole, is <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">a </span>very
useful discussion tool for both the lay person and the academic. It is
well-written and presents <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">a </span>great
deal of helpful information about Markan theology and the history of its
theological interpretation. One of the <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">book’s
</span>greatest assets is that Telford conscientiously presents views that
differ from his own. While I disagree with many of the conclusions he reached,
I find it helpful that he did provide the key alternative arguments. In that
regard, it is <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">a </span>rich and very
readable source of information for anyone wanting to learn more about the key
issues in Markan theology and the scholars who have stood on either side of
them.</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">A </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">major problem with the book is one that
shadows every redactioncritical examination of Mark’s Gospel. Since there is no
extant manuscript against which to gauge the alleged “edits” that Mark has
made, researchers such as Telford must hypothesize from the language in Mark’s
text, as well as from other hypothetical sources such as <i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Q, </span></i>to “determine” how Mark’s redaction
actually works. It is, of course, this redactional “evidence” that allows
Telford to build the somewhat dubious conclusion that Mark’s transformations of
the Jesus traditions present us with a realized eschatology whose christology
is singularly Hellenistic and whose soteriology is inescapably, one might even
say, inevitably, Pauline.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">BRIAN <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">K. </span>BLOUNT</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Princeton Theological Seminary</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Princeton, NJ</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Zie ook: </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<a href="http://www.bookreviews.org/pdf/631_218.pdf"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://www.bookreviews.org/pdf/631_218.pdf</span></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://whichcommentary.blogspot.nl/2012/01/welk-bijbelcommentaar-en-waarom.html" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">Back: commentaren overzicht</span></strong></a></span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://commentariesandreviews.blogspot.nl/2012/01/startbibliotheek-nt.html" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">Back: Starting Library NT</span></strong></a></span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span>E. van Wijkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02896627319013041491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-714947661312717398.post-4864142591118805592013-02-21T06:56:00.004-08:002013-02-21T06:57:03.910-08:00Review of: D. Moody Smith Jr., John (ANTC), Abingdon Press, 1999; in: Interpretation<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">D. Moody Smith Jr., <i>John</i> (ANTC), Abingdon Press, 1999.</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Review in: <i>Interpretation</i>
2004 58: 197 <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Review door: Robert
Kysar<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Gevonden op: </span></span></span><a href="http://int.sagepub.com/content/58/2/197.full.pdf+html"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://int.sagepub.com/content/58/2/197.full.pdf+html</span></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 1.05pt 0pt 0.2pt;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">John
<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<i><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">by D. Moody Smith, Jr. <o:p></o:p></span></i></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Abingdon New Testament
Commentary Series. Abingdon, Nashville, 1999. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">428 pp. $28.00. ISBN
0-687-05812-0. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 1.05pt 0pt 0.2pt;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">WITH A DISTINGUISHED
CAREER THAT SPANS nearly forty years, D. Moody Smith is one of the patriarchs
of contemporary Johannine studies in North America. His influence in critical
studies is well-earned and deserved. In keeping with the series, Smith aims to
interpret the Gospel of John in a manner that reflects the best of current
scholarship yet remains accessible to leaders in the church. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0.1pt 0pt 0cm;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">The form of Smith's
commentary follows the general pattern of most modern, critical works of this
kind. He begins with a brief twenty-five page introduction that addresses the
general questions of structure, genre, authorship, composition and source,
setting, and audience, and concludes with a few pages on the theology and
ethics of the Fourth Gospel. His approach to John rests on an assumption that
at least three stages of the Johannine community are reflected in the text: the
periods of Jesus' ministry, the conflict with the synagogue, and the church's
life after the split from the synagogue. He cautiously suggests that Ephesus is
a likely place for the composition of this gospel, some time between 90 and 110
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">CE. </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0.7pt 0pt 0cm;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">After dealing with the
first chapter of John, the commentary divides chs. 2 through 20 into two parts,
as do many others: "The Revelation of the Glory Before the World" and
"The Revelation of the Glory Before the Community." Smith treats ch.
21 as an epilogue whose function is to draw together loose-ends from the whole
narrative (e.g., the relationship of the Beloved Disciple and Peter). Nearly
every subdivision of the text (e.g., ch. 17) is first treated as a whole before
the specific verses are addressed. This allows Smith to explore general and
sometimes broader issues involved in the particular text before moving to its
details. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Smith's characteristic theological study of the New Testament
is evident as well as his contension that revelation is a central theme in John
(as the titles of the two halves of the narrative indicate). He emphasizes that
Jesus' death as narrated in the Fourth Gospel entails an unanticipated
understanding of glory. Equally important to Smith is the theory that this
gospel was composed amid conflict between the synagogue and the Jews who had
become Christians. According to this hypothesis, the Johannine Christians were
at some point expelled from the Jewish community. In this sense, Smith r</span>epresents a widely
accepted the<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">ory of the origin of the Johannine
church. </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0.8pt 0pt 0.2pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Perhaps
most striking about this commentary is Smith's treatment of passages in the
Fourth Gospel in light of the synoptics. He does not argue that the Fourth
Evangelist knew and used any of the first three gospels (although a later
publication stresses the possibility of John's use of Mark at certain points).
Generally, however, Smith practices a kind of intertextual criticism that
supposes that the four gospels are interrelated and should be interpreted as
such. For instance, he views 13:1-38 as a form of the Last Supper. After
setting a passage in dialogue with the synoptics, Smith brings his discussion
to a conclusion that gives the reader hooks by which to catch the meaning. This
sort of interpretative approach builds upon our knowledge of the synoptic story
of Jesus and prevents us from entirely isolating John from the other three
gospels. </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 2.5pt 0pt 0cm;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Smith
proposes what we might call a "moderately sacramental" reading of
John. He cannot imagine that ch. 6 could have been read in the first century as
anything other than a reference to the Eucharist, but he holds together both a
sacramental and incarnational understanding of the narrative and Jesus' words.
In a similar manner, he points out that the blood and water from Jesus side
(19:34) probably binds a eucharistie reference to the blood with an
anti-docetic interpretation of the water (i.e., Jesus is really dead). </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 2.35pt 0pt 0.1pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">No
matter how complete and competent, every commentary on John is vulnerable to
criticism, and Smith's is no different. I sometimes wished that he had avoided
a few qualifications and cautions in favor of more concise conclusions. For
example, Smith does not suppose we can decide either that the Fourth Gospel
actually represents the historical Jesus <i>or </i>that it does not. While he
does not hold that the gospel's author was an eyewitness disciple of Jesus, he
insists that we take the gospel's authority seriously. However, if that is a
weakness in this commentary, it is due entirely to the admirable fact that
Smith does not want us to pretend that we know more than we do. The result is a
"middle-of-the-road" treatment of John. This sort of critical thought
may not please those who wish for absolute certainty and crystal clarity, but it
exemplifies an honest intellectual maturity. </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">This is not to say that Smith's
commentary does not present a clear portrayal of the Fourth Gospel.
Illustrative of the features of that portrait, Smith concludes his discussion
of the death of Jesus in John with these words: "The God who reveals
himself in this Jesus is a God of the depths, as well as the heights, of human
existence. Precisely at the depths of human experience ... he glorifies God;
God glories him (17:4-5)" (pp. 369-70). </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 11.35pt 0pt 0cm;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">The
pastor or church leader will find no better guide through the sometimes strange
land of the Gospel of John and its message for us today than Smith's
commentary. Unlike many commentators who seem to remain neutral or uninterested
in how a biblical text relates to the church today, Smith is a both an
excellent scholar and a devout believer. </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div align="right" class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 144.8pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Robert Kysar, <i>emeritus</i></span></span></span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">CANDLER SCHOOL OF THEOLOGY</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">ATLANTA, GEORGIA</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Zie ook: </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<a href="http://www.bookreviews.org/pdf/1879_901.pdf"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://www.bookreviews.org/pdf/1879_901.pdf</span></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"></span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://whichcommentary.blogspot.nl/2012/01/welk-bijbelcommentaar-en-waarom.html" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">Back: commentaren overzicht</span></strong></a></span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://commentariesandreviews.blogspot.nl/2012/01/startbibliotheek-nt.html" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">Back: Starting Library NT</span></strong></a></span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />E. van Wijkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02896627319013041491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-714947661312717398.post-62423854326867907962013-02-21T06:55:00.003-08:002013-02-21T07:05:17.421-08:00Review of: Linda McKinnish Bridges, 1 & 2 Thessalonians (SHBC), Smyth & Helwys, 2008; in: Interpretation<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Linda McKinnish Bridges, </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><em>1 & 2 Thessalonians</em></span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"> (SHBC), Smyth & Helwys, 2008.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Review in: <i>Interpretation</i>
2010 64: 90 <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Review door: Jeffrey
A.D. Weima<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Gevonden op: </span></span></span><a href="http://int.sagepub.com/content/64/1/90.full.pdf+html"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://int.sagepub.com/content/64/1/90.full.pdf+html</span></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">1 & 2 Thessalonians</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<i><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">by Linda McKinnish Bridges
</span></i><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Smyth & Helwys, Macon, Ga., 2008. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">293 pp. $45.00 (cloth). ISBN 978-1-57312-083-8.</span><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">BIBLICAL SCHOLARSHIP
OVER the past twenty years has undergone a significant attitude shift with
regard to presenting its findings in a more "user-friendly" format.
Two decades ago, those few Old and New Testament studies that contained visual
images and special-interest boxes ("sidebars") were not considered
scholarly enough to be worthy of serious consideration. Not so any more. In
recent years, we have seen a growing wave of published biblical scholarship
specifically designed to bridge the gap between the insights of academicians
and the demands of theological students and preachers.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 0.2pt;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">The new commentary on 1
and 2 Thessalonians by Linda McKinnish Bridges illustrates this shift. Her
volume is part of an ambitious series, the Smyth & Helwys Bible Commentary,
that covers both Old and New Testaments and whose stated goal is "to make
available serious, credible biblical scholarship in an accessible and less
intimidating format" (p. xv). A multimedia format is employed under the
conviction that "a visual generation of believers deserves a commentary
series that contains not only the all-important textual commentary on
Scripture, but images, photographs, maps, works of fine art, and drawings that
bring the text to light" (p. xv). Like the others in the series, this
volume treats each major section of the biblical text in two main sections:
Commentary and Connections. The first deals with matters typically found in an
exegetical commentary: explanations of the Greek text, historical context and
literary forms, as well as theological issues that the text raises. The
Connections section deals with the application of the text, providing the
pastor, teacher, and lay reader with specific ways in which these two ancient
letters remain relevant for the church today. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Sidebars are located liberally throughout both sections. Each
of these special-interest boxes has not only a descriptive heading but also an
icon intended to provide a visual clue to the type of material found within.
These sidebars are classified into four different types. The first, symbolized
with an icon of the Greek letters, Alpha and Omega, deals with issues
pertaining to the Greek text of 1 and 2 Thessalonians. The second, with an icon
of an Ionic capital, covers the cultural context: how geographical, historical,
political, or social information from the Greco-Roman world sheds light on
Paul's words to the Thessalonian church. The third, with its icon of an open
book, includes quotations from classic or contemporary literature that
illuminate some aspect of the apostle's letter. The fourth, symbolized with a
magnifying glass, provides the reader with a list of useful resources for
further investigation. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">A lot of effort has been put into producing a commentary on 1
and 2 Thessalonians that meets the series goal of making available serious
scholarship in an accessible format, and that effort must be judged a success.
This resulting volume presents its material in an inviting, visually rich
format that will be appreciated not only by pastors, seminary students, and lay
readers but also by academicians. In the midst of a plethora of commentary
series currently on the market, the user-friendly format of this volume makes
it stand out as an attractive option. Nevertheless, the discerning commentary
buyer might worry that such a volume is, as the saying goes, "all style
and no substance." We move, therefore, beyond the packaging of this volume
to consider more carefully its contents. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 1.55pt 0pt 0cm;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">The brief introduction
(thirteen pages) presents four patterns of thought that have guided McKinnish
Bridges' reading of 1 Thessalonians. First, she was surprised to discover from
Paul's style of leadership that the apostle is not the arrogant, manipulative,
and misogynist person she anticipated but "a softer Paul, accessible to
all people, both male and female" (p. 6). Second, with regard to identifying
the letter's literary genre, McKinnish Bridges chooses "not to confine
Paul's words to any single genre or theory, ancient or modern" (p. 8), and
refers to the letter more generally as a letter of friendship by which Paul
encourages the Thessalonian church. Third, the congregation of Thessalonica is
not based in the home of a wealthy patron but is an artisan church—a community
shaped by manual laborers who meet in a workshop or tenement house. Fourth, the
original members of thi^artisan community were primarily male and the resulting
androcentric perspective encoded in the letter has implications for its
interpretation: "If a feminine perspective is absent, either by force or
ignorance, then the interpreter is faced with the challenge of creating new worlds
of meaning that will be more inclusive and available to all of the readers.
That is the purpose of this commentary" (p. 12). <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">The exegesis is competent and typically follows the positions
of mainline Thessalonian scholarship. Objections could be raised about any
commentary; space constraints allow me to raise just three. First, McKinnish
Bridges follows the majority of contemporary scholars in rejecting the older
view that sees an apologetic concern at work in the letter. Yet she
misrepresents the older view, claiming that it holds that Paul was seeking
"to defend his role as leader, a role that was being challenged by
opponents in the congregation in Thessaloniki" (p. 19). This is incorrect,
as defenders of the older view claim that Paul's opponents are <i>outside </i>the
church (2:14, "fellow citizens") and that the attack on the apostle
thus naturally concerned not his qualifications as leader (as in Galatians),
but his integrity and moral character. Second, on the heavily debated textual
question of whether Paul described himself and his coworkers as
"gentle" <i>(epiot) </i>or "infants" <i>(nepioi), </i>McKinnish
Bridges chooses what she admits on external evidence is the weaker reading,
namely, "gentle." She does so on the grounds that this reading
eliminates a mixed metaphor created by the image of a nursing mother mentioned
later in the same verse. But the problem of the mixed metaphor is greatly
minimized if not removed altogether with proper punctuation of the verse, so
that the metaphor of infants <i>concludes </i>the point of 2:5-7, while the
metaphor of a nursing mother <i>introduces </i>the new point of 2:7b-8 (as
correctly punctuated in the TNIV). Third, one of McKinnish Bridges'</span> <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">more novel interpretations is that the word
"laborers" in 5:12 ("those who labor among you in the
Lord") refers not to spiritual leaders working in the church but simply to
"people who produce goods for society" (p. 150). That Paul has in
view, however, not regular laborers but spiritual leaders seems clear from the
accompanying prepositional phrase that such folks are "in the Lord"
and that the rest of the church should "esteem them most highly because of
their work." </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 0.2pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">The Connection
section for each major unit of the letter runs on average about two-thirds the
length of the Commentary section and thus forms a significant part of the
overall volume. McKinnish Bridges draws heavily in this section from her own
past experiences and often speaks in the first-person voice, giving a very
personal and almost autobiographical quality to this material. She grew up in a
fundamentalist Baptist mountain church where end-time discussions played a
heavy role, and many of her observations in this section involve reflections on
how her past understanding of the Bible has been nuanced or changed by her
later academic studies, life experiences, and reflection. </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 1.3pt 0pt 0.2pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">There is a
separate and lengthier introduction (twenty pages) to 2 Thessalonians.
McKinnish Bridges argues that this letter differs from 1 Thessalonians in its
emotional tone, vocabulary, and syntactical structure, and thus was not written
by Paul. She spends quite a bit of time discussing pseudepigraphical writing,
arguing that "to forge a name on a piece of work did not signal
dishonesty; rather, to place a name other than your own on the work was a way
of honoring the past, of creating additional authority for the name and
readers" (p. 200). Second Thessalonians, she argues, was written by a
disciple of Paul to a Thessalonian church that is a little older, bolder, and
more organized, but that needed doctrinal correction concerning the end times
and admonishment concerning work. </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 2.25pt 0pt 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">To summarize, McKinnish Bridges has produced a commentary on 1 and 2
Thessalonians that fulfills well the series goal of providing solid scholarship
in a nonthreatening, user-friendly format, and therefore will be especially
appealing to those engaged in pastoral ministry. But while all will appreciate
this volume's packaging, judgment about its contents will likely be more mixed,
depending on whether one shares McKinnish Bridges' specific patterns of thought
on how these two letters ought to be read. </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div align="right" class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 143.85pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Jeffrey A. D. Weima</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">CALVIN THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">GRAND RAPIDS, MICHGIAN</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://whichcommentary.blogspot.nl/2012/01/welk-bijbelcommentaar-en-waarom.html" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">Back: commentaren overzicht</span></strong></a></span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://commentariesandreviews.blogspot.nl/2012/01/startbibliotheek-nt.html" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">Back: Starting Library NT</span></strong></a></span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span>E. van Wijkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02896627319013041491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-714947661312717398.post-80528737532887206422013-02-21T06:54:00.000-08:002013-02-21T06:54:40.663-08:00Review of: Luke Timothy Johnson, Hebrews: A Commentary (NTL), Westminster John Knox, 2006; in: Interpretation<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Luke Timothy Johnson</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">, </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Hebrews: A
Commentary</span></i><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> (NTL), </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Westminster John Knox, 2006.</span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Review in: <i>Interpretation</i>
2008 62: 198 <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Review door: David
A. deSilva<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Gevonden op: </span></span></span><a href="http://int.sagepub.com/content/62/2/198.full.pdf+html"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://int.sagepub.com/content/62/2/198.full.pdf+html</span></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p> </o:p></span></span></span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Hebrews: A Commentary </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<i><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">by Luke Timothy
Johnson </span></i><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">New Testament Library.
Westminster John Knox, Louisville, 2006.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">430 pp. $49.95
(cloth). ISBN 0-664-22118-1. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">IN THIS NEW VOLUME,
the celebrated author of many commentaries on NT writings (Luke, Acts, James, 1
Timothy, and Titus) brings his considerable skills and winsome writing style to
bear on one of the more elusive NT books. The form is that of a standard
commentary. An introduction treats matters of historical setting, literary
issues, prominent influences, and the like. The commentary itself divides the
text into sections and proceeds in a linear fashion through the text (though,
notably, in a more flowing fashion that the atomistic verse-by-verse format of
many commentaries). Within each section, the reader finds the author's original
translation with an able treatment of text-critical issues, discussion of key
terms and phrases on the basis of parallels in Jewish and Greco-Roman
literature, explorations of how older traditions (both biblical and
extrabiblical) have informed the argument, and a close analysis of the argument
itself. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 4.15pt 0pt 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Johnson approaches Hebrews first through
the history of its reception and the ways in which it was valued and used within
the Christian tradition of the first five centuries in both the East and West.
This is one of the gifts that Johnson brings as a Roman Catholic biblical
scholar, who values the witness of the tradition of the "fathers."
This provides, in turn, a foundation and, indeed, justification for the
historical-critical investigations and conclusions (e.g., concerning
authorship) that follow, as well as for what Johnson will himself hold up as
the primary contributions of Hebrews to Christian thought and practice. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">This approach is well
informed not only by historical- and literary-critical methods, but also by
rhetorical criticism and cultural anthropological studies of Hebrews and the
first-century environment. Notably, honor and reciprocity are highlighted as key
values available to be harnessed rhetorically in the argument. Johnson presents
Hebrews as a specimen of deliberative rhetoric that seeks to dissuade the
audience from one course of action (giving up their Christian associations) in
favor of another (persevering in the process of spiritual maturation that
Christ pioneered and that they have begun). The introduction provides an
orientation to what becomes a prominent feature of the entire commentary,
namely Hebrews' location in regard to currents of thought in Greco-Roman,
Jewish, <i>and </i>Christian culture, with appropriate balance in terms of
analyzing both similarities and differences (e.g., in terms of Platonism or the
form of Judaism associated with Qumran). What Hebrews shares with other</span><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> early Christian teaching and practice is all too often
overlooked in terms of "backgrounds," but proves especially fruitful
for locating Hebrews, often viewed as "so distinctive" (p. 28),
within the larger Christian landscape. Johnson is especially attentive, as one
would expect, to issues surrounding the interpretation of the OT (the LXX, in
particular) in Hebrews. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0.45pt 0pt 0.2pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">The
discussion of setting is appropriately (and necessarily) honest about the
limits of historical investigation of the situation of Hebrews and the identity
of its author. Johnson develops a fairly full portrait of the rhetorical
situation of the hearers. They are seasoned Christians, perhaps more likely of
Jewish heritage than Gentile, who, in the face of society's shaming and
marginalization, are faced constantly with the decision about whether or not to
persist in their Christian confession, associations, and practice. He argues
from a number of sensible angles that the composition predates the destruction
of the second Temple, and may even stand among the earliest NT texts. Closing
the gap between plausible and probable authorship, Johnson makes a spirited and
suggestive case for Apollos as the author, although he frankly admits the
difficulties of this claim. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0.6pt 0pt 0.35pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Perhaps
the most valuable feature of Johnson's commentary, however, is his commitment
not to choose between a focus on historical study and contemporary application,
but to pursue both with excellence and without apology. He does not pursue the
latter in a facile manner, for he is astutely alert to the fundamental change
in consciousness that separates many modern readers from the discourse of
Hebrews with regard to cosmology (especially viewing the "invisible"
world as more real, more true, and more valuable than the "visible"
world and the dynamics of living within a materialist world view), view of
Scripture (that is, as artifact to be excavated rather than as living voice of
the living God), and the "slow erosion of Christian belief and practice
itself" (p. 7) in the world of modern readers. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 0.45pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Perhaps precisely because it speaks from outside our world,
Hebrews is able to challenge modern readers who have been shaped too much by
that world. Johnson argues that the Christology of Hebrews gives sustained
attention to both Christ's divinity and humanity, and makes the case that
Christ's process of learning and being shaped through suffering was the means
by which "the human Jesus grew progressively into the full stature of
being God's Son" (p. 54). This Christology challenges contemporary models
of discipleship that suggest freedom from pain and the enjoyment of temporal
goods as the gifts God seeks to give Christ-followers, as well as the
alternative vision of discipleship that focuses on socio-political
transformation for the purpose of removing suffering without grasping the
personal transformation that only suffering enables. Finally, Hebrews' rigorous
demands upon the recipient of God's gifts challenge the contemporary <i>Zeitgeist
</i>that makes "moral ambiguity and tolerance for wrongdoing the mark of
maturity" (p. 2). The essence of Hebrews is captured in the image of
discipleship as a pilgrimage, a journey through the process of maturation
specifically by means of the challenges that produce emotional, intellectual,
spiritual, and physical suffering. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">The commentary is not as
"critical" as several other recent volumes in terms of engaging
secondary literature and weighing every major alternative interpretation.
However, this also becomes a strength of this work, as the focus remains far
more squarely on the interpretation of the text rather than the history of
scholarship. The researcher who wishes to enter into the <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">latter always has Attridge, Lane, and Koester
to consult; the reader seeking to engage a coherent and focused interpretation
of Hebrews now has Johnson. This commentary will also not provide much guidance
for those seeking additional reading on particular questions, backgrounds, or
passages, but ample resources in this vein already exist. </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">One could, of course, quibble here and there about
exegetical details in the commentary and their pastoral application. For
example, Johnson suggests that "entering God's rest" (when God has,
in fact, kept working throughout all time), signals that human beings who
become more and more open to the divine existence no longer work in order to
fill some personal need, but out of "an outpouring of abundant love"
(p. 130). This reading seems to violate the overall eschatological orientation
of the passage (indeed, the book) that regards "the Sabbath rest" as
an image of entering God's realm alongside other images such as arriving at the
"abiding" city "that has foundations." The author's use of
all such images impels the hearers forward in their pilgrimage, that <i>is<sub><span style="mso-text-raise: -1.5pt; position: relative; top: 1.5pt;"><span style="font-size: small;">y </span></span></sub></i>to
maintain their association with the Christian group. At the same time, however,
one cannot deny that Johnson's pastoral sensitivity and spiritual acuity here
capture a larger truth of the Scriptures—even if it is suspect on the basis of <i>this
</i>passage—and that is also a gift of his location in the tradition of
Catholic scholarship going back to Augustine. One might also wish for a more
consistently precise analysis of the rhetorical argument. For example, it is
not only the case that both the expository and hortatory sections of Hebrews
manifest the same strategy of "lesser to greater" (p. 32). Rather,
the expository sections establish the relationship of the "lesser"
and the "greater" that becomes a premise supporting the primary
hortatory enthymemes (e.g., 2:1-4; 10:26-31; 12:25-26). </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 2.85pt 0pt 0.1pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">But these minor reservations
should not obscure Johnson's achievement: the creation of an insightful and
reliable <i>vade mecum </i>to lead the pastor or teacher through the intricate
arguments of Hebrews to contemporary application, from a teacher who is himself
capable both as a scholar and a spiritual director. </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 0.2pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">David
A. deSilva</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">ASHLAND
THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">ASHLAND,
OHIO</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Zie ook:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<a href="http://www.bookreviews.org/pdf/5445_5739.pdf"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://www.bookreviews.org/pdf/5445_5739.pdf</span></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"></span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://whichcommentary.blogspot.nl/2012/01/welk-bijbelcommentaar-en-waarom.html" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">Back: commentaren overzicht</span></strong></a></span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://commentariesandreviews.blogspot.nl/2012/01/startbibliotheek-nt.html" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">Back: Starting Library NT</span></strong></a></span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />E. van Wijkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02896627319013041491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-714947661312717398.post-40874283837547050372013-02-21T06:52:00.003-08:002013-02-21T06:52:47.354-08:00Review of: Klaus Haacker, The Theology of Paul's Letter to the Romans (NTT), Cambridge University Press, 2003; in: Interpretation<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Klaus
Haacker, </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">The Theology of Paul's Letter to the Romans</span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> (NTT), Cambridge
University Press, 2003.</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Review in: <i>Interpretation</i>
2004 58: 313 <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Review door: Charles
B. Cousar<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Gevonden op: </span></span></span><a href="http://int.sagepub.com/content/58/3/313.1.full.pdf+html"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://int.sagepub.com/content/58/3/313.1.full.pdf+html</span></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 22.4pt 0pt 0.7pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">The Theology of
Paul's Letter to the Romans </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<i><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">by Klaus Haacker </span></i><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">New Testament
Theology. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2003.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">183 pp. $20.00.
ISBN 0-521-43535-8.</span><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></span></span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 2pt 0pt 0.1pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">THIS
VOLUME ON Romans brings to a conclusion an extremely useful series on the
theology of the various canonical witnesses, edited by James D. G. Dunn.
Volumes by Richard Bauckham (on Revelation), Victor P. Furnish (on 1
Corinthians), Joel Green (on Luke), Ulrich Luz (on Matthew), Moody Smith (on
John), and Frances Young (on the Pastoral Letters), among others, have provided
timely explorations of theological themes and issues that are freed from the
burdens of a commentary. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 0.1pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">In
one sense, Haacker follows in the same tradition. He quickly walks the reader
through the introductory questions of date, authorship, purpose, and audience,
in order to get at the questions of theology. The initial readership, for
Haacker, is primarily Roman, with a minority of Christian Jews in the picture.
Yet the inclusion of the Gentiles in the community of faith was still enough at
stake that Paul had to devote considerable space and attention to "the
vindication of the universalism of the Gospel" (p. 26). <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 1.05pt 0pt 0.1pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">What
Haacker sees as the distinctive idea of Romans is "the notion of peace
with God as the promise of the Gospel" (p. 45). Since peace was a rare
commodity in the Roman world, its proclamation addresses the universal chaos
and promises to establish an adequate relationship between human beings and
their Creator. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 2.85pt 0pt 0.1pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">As
far as Israel is concerned, one day they will be saved, confirming God's
faithfulness and election. "The voice of God's love which speaks so
powerfully through the death of Christ for our sins is not quenched by periods
of error and alienation on the side of his people" (p. 95). <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">The latter portion of the book is given
over to a somewhat sketchy discussion of the relation of Romans to other
canonical literature and to its impact on the later history of the church (from
1 Clement to Karl Barth in ten pages!). Frankly, I wished for a more serious
struggle with the theology of Romans, with its apocalyptic force (not mentioned
at all), and with its tension between the impartiality and faithfulness of God,
instead of the necessarily brief and slight treatment of the letter's place in
the canonical structure and in the life of the church. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 18.35pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">CHARLES B. COUSAR</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">COLUMBIA THEOLOGICAL
SEMINARY</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">DECATUR, GEORGIA</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Zie ook: </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<a href="http://www.bookreviews.org/pdf/4102_3986.pdf"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://www.bookreviews.org/pdf/4102_3986.pdf</span></span></a><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">en:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<a href="http://www.bookreviews.org/pdf/4177_4091.pdf"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://www.bookreviews.org/pdf/4177_4091.pdf</span></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"></span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://whichcommentary.blogspot.nl/2012/01/welk-bijbelcommentaar-en-waarom.html" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">Back: commentaren overzicht</span></strong></a></span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://commentariesandreviews.blogspot.nl/2012/01/startbibliotheek-nt.html" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">Back: Starting Library NT</span></strong></a></span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />E. van Wijkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02896627319013041491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-714947661312717398.post-2584630752044594422013-02-21T06:51:00.001-08:002013-02-21T06:51:30.635-08:00Review of: Victor Paul Furnish, The Theology of the First Letter to the Corinthians (NTT), Cambridge University Press, 1999; in: Theology Today<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Victor Paul Furnish, </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">The Theology of the First Letter to the Corinthians</span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> (NTT), </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Cambridge University Press, 1999.<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Review in: </span><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Theology Today </span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">2000 57: 402</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Review door: </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Charles B. Cousar</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Gevonden op: </span></span></span><a href="http://ttj.sagepub.com/content/57/3/402.full.pdf+html"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://ttj.sagepub.com/content/57/3/402.full.pdf+html</span></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">The Theology of the First Letter to the Corinthians<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">By
Victor Paul Furnish<o:p></o:p></span></i></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Cambridge,
Cambridge University Press, 1999. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">167
pp. $49.95.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Of his
generation Victor Furnish has come to be recognized as one of the most
respected interpreters of the Pauline letters to Corinth. In addition to his
many articles on the correspondence, he has written the magisterial commentary
on 2 Corinthians in the Anchor Bible. Now he has added to the list with this
fine study of the theology of 1 Corinthians in the Cambridge series “New
Testament Theology.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Furnish
begins with a sketch of Paul’s relationship to the Christians at Corinth and a
brief statement of the aims and structure of the letter. His conclusions follow
those taken in his commentary. He then basically walks the reader through the
letter and comments on its theology under four major categories: knowing God and
belonging to Christ (1 Cor 14), belonging to Christ in an unbelieving
society (1 Cor 5: 1-1 1 </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">: </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">l), belonging to Christ in a believing
community (1 Cor 11:2-14:40), and hoping in God, the “all in all” (1 Cor 15). A
concluding chapter raises the issue of the significance of 1 Corinthians for
Christian thought, with a final page or two on its relevancy to the church
today.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">The
advantage of Furnish’s method is a neat reading of the letter, one in which
theology is highlighted above a mere survey of the problems facing the church.
The reader is able to appreciate the fact that Paul in addressing the many
pastoral and moral issues troubling the Corinthians does so by writing about
the cross, or the nature of the eucharist, or the resurrection. One good
example occurs in the warnings against <i>porneia </i>in 6:12-20. Furnish calls
attention to the significance of the “body” as much more than the physical body
that one has. It becomes the place “where the claim of the
resurrected-crucified Lord is received and where his lordship is to be manifest.
</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">”<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Furnish
isolates three “authentically theological discourses” in the letter (1:18-2:16;
12:12-13:13; 15:l-58) and in their place he gives special attention to each. He
contends that they each reflect the basic soteriological, christological,
eschatological, and ecclesiological thrusts of the letter. And yet in many ways
the strongest chapter of Furnish’s book deals with the portion of 1 Corinthians
that does <i>not </i>contain one of these theological discourses-5: 1-1 1 </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">: </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">1.
Seeing Paul at work as a pastor-theologian, drawing on the gospel in dealing
with issues on living in a pagan environment but without long reflective
sections, is remarkably instructive and provides a model for contemporary
pastor-theologians.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Though
Furnish tends to be very descriptive and not to say much about the contemporary
church and what a modern reader might find theologically instructive in 1
Corinthians, he lays the groundwork time and again for such a possibility. In
facing the problems of living in an unbelieving society, Paul appears
preoccupied with drawing boundaries between the church and its social
environment (for example, incidents of incest and taking one another to court).
At times, believers even are beginning to resemble unbelievers in Corinth. And
yet, as Furnish makes clear, the identity of the Christian community is given
in and with the gospel: “Belonging to Christ is not mainly about drawing
boundaries and keeping them inviolate, but about holding fast to the gospel
(10:12; 15:l-2).” One cannot help but discover here a word for the mainline
North American church and its struggle to find its identity in a secular
society.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">This
is a thoughtful, carefully written book. I plan to have it on my reading list
for next semester’s course on Paul.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">CHARLES B. COUSAR</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Columbia Theological Seminary</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Decatur. GA</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"></span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://whichcommentary.blogspot.nl/2012/01/welk-bijbelcommentaar-en-waarom.html" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">Back: commentaren overzicht</span></strong></a></span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://commentariesandreviews.blogspot.nl/2012/01/startbibliotheek-nt.html" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">Back: Starting Library NT</span></strong></a></span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />E. van Wijkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02896627319013041491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-714947661312717398.post-10294771239948359442013-02-21T06:49:00.003-08:002013-02-21T06:50:07.103-08:00Review of: R. Alan Culpepper, Mark (SHBC), Smyth & Helwys, 2007; in: interpretation<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "NFJBR Y+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">R. Alan
Culpepper, <i>Mark</i> (SHBC), </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "DYXLR R+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Smyth &
Helwys, 2007.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Review in: <i>Interpretation</i>
2009 63: 188 <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Review door: </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Emerson B. Powery</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Gevonden op: </span></span></span><a href="http://int.sagepub.com/content/63/2/188.full.pdf+html"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://int.sagepub.com/content/63/2/188.full.pdf+html</span></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 0.2pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Mark </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<i><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "NFJBR Y+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">by R. Alan Culpepper </span></i><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "NFJBR Y+ Times";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "DYXLR R+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Smyth & Helwys Bible Commentary. Smyth &
Helwys, Macon, Ga., 2007.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "DYXLR R+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">622 pp. $60.00 (cloth). ISBN 978-1-57312-077-7. </span><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "DYXLR R+ Times";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "DYXLR R+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">R. ALAN CULPEPPER, a premier Johannine
scholar, turns his exegetical skills to the Gospel of Mark and produces a
first-rate theological commentary on the first Gospel written in early
Christianity. The Smyth & Helwys Bible Commentary series is dedicated to
providing sound, credible, and scholarly interpretation on the books of the
Bible for serious contemporary Christians. The series' format includes
multimedia art, photographs (including the author's own), maps, and a CD (which
allows enhanced searches), in addition to a variety of sidebars with observations
ancillary, but intriguingly relevant, to the main comments of the interpreter.
Culpepper's offering is an excellent example of the intent of the series. In
his words, "It is our hope that this commentary will foster biblical
preaching, devotional reading, and moral decision-making for those who draw
inspiration from Mark" (p. 3). Writers in this series complement the
commentary sections with theological reflections ("Connections").</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 2.15pt 0pt 0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "DYXLR R+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">The layout of the
volume aims to be user friendly and generally succeeds in this endeavor. Its
sidebars, printed helpfully in an alternative color font, address linguistic,
cultural, and interpretive issues, drawing on various sources, including
theater and sociology. The sidebars also include a wide range of reflections.
Chapter 1, for example, features reflections from Origen, Albert Schweitzer,
Gerd Theissen/Annette Merz, Stephen Hawking, and Matthew Arnold. Other items in
the sidebars include sermonic reflection on "Sabbath Resistance" by
Barbara Brown Taylor, Josephus' alternative account of the death of lohn the
Baptist, numerous references to patristic theologians, and a variety of
cultural issues (e.g., "age in antiquity," "patrons, brokers,
and clients," "rank and status" in the Dead Sea Scrolls,
"children in antiquity" and "divorce among first-century
Jews"). Culpepper's sidebars on "mystery religions" and
"pesher interpretation," found on the same page (p. 138), demonstrate
his sensitivity to both Greco-Roman and Jewish contexts for the narrative of
Mark. </span><span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: "DYXLR R+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: "DYXLR R+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Culpepper's introduction
to the commentary addresses many traditional concerns: the function of a
commentary, five eras in Markan scholarship, Mark's leading themes, setting,
date of composition, and authorship. There are few surprises here. The overview
of the "five eras" concludes with a discussion of the "creative
Mark" and the "natural" flow of redaction criticism into
narrative studies. This "era," however, only leads us through the
1980s and early 1990s. It is probably too soon to say whether recent
postcolonial scholarship on Mark and "empire" or the latest work in
performance theory and Mark's oral environment will </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">constitute another era, although Culpepper includes
a few noteworthy contributions from these categories in his selective
bibliography. </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 3.2pt 0pt 0.1pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">On traditional issues in Markan
scholarship, Culpepper proposes little that is new and takes the following
positions: he advocates for Rome rather than Galilee/Syria as the provenance of
the Gospel; he dates the composition between 68-73 CE.; and claims, "there
is no reason to doubt" the traditional authorship of John Mark, though
"this traditional identification is only of limited value for reading the
Gospel" (p. 31). This conclusion is not surprising for an interpreter
whose scholarship has placed more attention on the narrative itself than on the
world behind it. </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 0.1pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Culpepper's decades-long approach
to narrative studies informs much of this volume, although this methodology
does not control all of his exegetical decisions. He carefully interprets later
segments of the narrative in light of earlier passages, with a few forays into
reader-response territory (e.g., Robert Fowler). Those familiar with Markan
scholarship will find few surprises, but less informed readers will benefit
greatly from Culpepper's discussion. Interpretive decisions he makes about Mark
1 provide a few examples. Following N. Clayton Croy's recent argument,
Culpepper regards Mark 1:1 as a second-century scribal notation added as a
superscription to an awkward beginning, which—like the Gospel's ending—may have
been lost. However, he also argues that the title "Son of God" is
original to Mark 1:1 and not a later addition, apparently nullifying the claim
about the second century provenance of 1:1. Culpepper <i>sees </i>Mark 1:14-15
as an introduction to the first main section of the Gospel rather than as a
"conclusion" to the preface. He also favors the more difficult
text-critical reading of "moved with anger" <i>(orgistheis) </i>over
"moved with pity" <i>(splagchnistheis) </i>in 1:41, envisioning a
Jesus angry at the disease itself (p. 62). In 1:44, he prefers a
"negative" rather than positive use of the dative, with the result
that the cleansed leper is directed to show himself to the priest and offer for
his cleansing what Moses commanded as a "testimony against them."
Culpepper takes this to mean "either an indictment of the powerlessness of
the cultic system in contrast to the power of Jesus or a condemnation of their
unbelief" (p. 63). This is but a sampling of the exegetical insight in
this volume. </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Elsewhere, other interesting
decisions will generate discussion and debate. Culpepper interprets the
well-known crux of 4:10-12 regarding Jesus' teaching in parables in light of
both the mysteries in Greco-Roman mystery religions and the revelation in
pesher interpretation at Qumran. He concludes that Jesus is the
"secret" and that his parables represent a "veiled kingdom"
for outsiders (p. 139). Culpepper maintains that Jesus' encounter with the
Syrophoenician woman "may have been a turning point" for his ministry
(p. 242), forcing his attention away from Jewish settings as a result of this
engagement with a Gentile (i.e., "Greek") woman who cleverly turned
Jesus' offense into an advantage. Culpepper draws no clear conclusion on the
meaning of Mark 9:1, but he helpfully recognizes the transfiguration passage as
a parallel to the baptism scene—one that introduces the second half of the
Gospel (just as the baptism, where a voice from heaven also speaks, commences
the first half). In Mark 10, the Pharisees challenge Jesus on the issue of
divorce in order to provoke him into speaking a word of criticism against
Herod, so that he might share the fate of his predecessor, John the Baptist (p.
328). Culpepper is noncommital on the ending of Mark, though the
"connections" he articulates presume the Gospel ends at 16:8. </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 0.2pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Most of my criticisms are minor.
The regular use of "A.D." for dates is inconsistent with the list on
the abbreviation page. In my view, the "testing" of Jesus' disciples
is only implicit, rather than thematic. There is nothing in Mark comparable to
the Fourth Gospel's portrayal of Jesus' testing of Philip (John 6:6). Late
medieval art dominates the art selections (Michelangelo's "Head of John
the Baptist" and Gruenewald's "The Crucifixion of Christ" are outstanding
examples), and very little contemporary art appears in the volume. Each
reviewer has his or her own preferences and my own inclination would have been
toward more engagement with feminist and postcolonial scholarship. Several
places would lend themselves to such engagement, as Culpepper recognizes the
role and influence of Rome throughout his commentary. It was heartening to see
Jesse Jackson and Gustavo Gutierrez cited in the theological
"connection" sections, but exegetical <i>scholarship </i>by
minorities and women is increasingly available. </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 2.15pt 0pt 0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Overall, this is a useful and
highly readable volume and valuable guide for a reading of the Gospel of Mark.
It is also much more than a commentary on Mark. It is a teaching tool.
Culpepper provides the busy pastor, the serious theological student, and the
engaged contemporary Christian with insights from the cultural world
surrounding early Christianity's first story about Jesus. They will also
encounter the history of interpretation on Mark, contemporary theological
reflections upon it, and artwork generated by Mark's story. In addition,
Culpepper's "connections" provide engaging resources for contemporary
exploration of the theological implications of this ancient Christian Gospel
for contemporary followers of Jesus. For example, who would have thought that
Mark 3:20-35 (and the issue of blasphemy) would have relevance for contemporary
interreligious dialogue? Culpepper maintains that "for a Christian
religious leader to say, 'Mohammed was a demon-possessed pedophile,' poses a serious
hindrance to the reconciling, forgiving, and peace-making work of the Holy
Spirit" (pp. 128-29). And how might Jesus' difficult teaching on divorce
and remarriage (Mark 10:1-12) relate to contemporary struggles with women in
ministry (in some circles) and the issue of homosexuality (in other ones)? The
door has been opened for contemporary reflection. Scholars will find it a
useful resource for the classroom setting, especially in the context of
theological education. </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 0.2pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Emerson
B. Powery</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">MESSIAH
COLLEGE</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">GRANTHAM,
PENNSYLVANIA</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Zie ook:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<a href="http://www.bookreviews.org/pdf/6892_7467.pdf"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://www.bookreviews.org/pdf/6892_7467.pdf</span></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"></span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://whichcommentary.blogspot.nl/2012/01/welk-bijbelcommentaar-en-waarom.html" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">Back: commentaren overzicht</span></strong></a></span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://commentariesandreviews.blogspot.nl/2012/01/startbibliotheek-nt.html" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">Back: Starting Library NT</span></strong></a></span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />E. van Wijkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02896627319013041491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-714947661312717398.post-38760561312354442882013-02-21T06:48:00.003-08:002013-02-21T06:48:49.541-08:00Review of: J. Bradley Chance, Acts (SHBC), Smyth & Helwys, 2007; in: Interpretation<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "MRSGD O+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">J.
Bradley Chance, <i>Acts</i> (SHBC), Smyth & Helwys, 2007.</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Review in: <i>Interpretation</i>
2009 63: 192 <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Review door: Matthew
L. Skinner<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Gevonden op: </span></span></span><a href="http://int.sagepub.com/content/63/2/192.full.pdf+html"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://int.sagepub.com/content/63/2/192.full.pdf+html</span></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Acts </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<i><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "MRSGD O+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">by J. Bradley Chance </span></i><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "MRSGD O+ Times";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "RMEHE C+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Smyth & Helwys Bible Commentary. Smyth & Helwys, Macon, Ga.,
2007. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "RMEHE C+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">562 pp. $60.00 (cloth). ISBN 978-1-57312-080-7.</span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "RMEHE C+ Times";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "RMEHE C+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">OVER THIRTY-FIVE YEARS AGO in an
article in </span><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "MRSGD O+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Interpretation, </span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "RMEHE C+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Paul Minear expressed a concern that the book of
Acts was becoming theologically unintelligible to American Christians.
Modernity and its robust skepticism made Luke's depiction of the
"persistent purpose of God" appear far-fetched to many; moreover,
assertions of providential design and accounts of apostolic signs and wonders
in Acts could "lead to supercilious rejection of both Luke and his early
readers" ("Dear Theo: The Kerygmatic Intention and Claim of the Book
of Acts," </span><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "MRSGD O+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">IntU.l </span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "RMEHE C+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">[1973]: 150). Minear therefore summoned </span><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "MRSGD O+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Interpretation's </span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "RMEHE C+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">readers
to convene fresh theological conversations with Acts, conversations that
creatively mediate faithful dialogue between the people of God today and the
word of God, as Acts bears witness to it.</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 1.8pt 0pt 0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Although his commentary never refers to Minear, Bradley Chance seems
impelled by similar concerns. Chance, who teaches at Missouri's William Jewell
College, writes that his chief aim is to explore the theological contours of
Acts. For him, this means focusing on the story Luke tells, drawing insights
and lessons from the narrative depiction of God and God's activity among the
human participants in the drama. The commentary is less about deducing Luke's
theological or kerygmatic agenda for his time and more about fashioning a
creative engagement with a scriptural account of God and God's agents in a way
that attends to both the text and twenty-first century Western worldviews. </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Chance therefore frequently highlights aspects of
Acts that raise questions about relating the divine will and human freedom.
When God orchestrates events either obtrusively or subtly—ranging from Philip's
strange encounter with the Ethiopian eunuch to Paul's custody as an opportunity
to bear witness in Rome—Chance presses readers to understand God as
participating within the world as a party to its history. Incorporating
proposals from process theology and open theism, he finds Acts especially
congenial to views that set providential design and human participation in a
creative, integrated tension. Quoting Marjorie Hewitt Suchocki, whom he cites
often, Chance asserts, "God works with the world as it is in order to
bring it to where it can be" (p. 439). His exegesis takes aim at
simplistic and overbearing understandings of divine sovereignty that hold sway
in many popular readings of Acts. These are the same kinds of understandings
that make Acts problematic for other readers, and that are easily overwhelmed
by the modernist skepticism that Minear identified. Most </span><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">impressive is Chance's ability to make his theological case
in language that nonspecialists will find thoroughly accessible. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 1.65pt 0pt 0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">This accessibility is a main feature of the growing Smyth 8c
Helwys Commentary series. Directed toward students and churchgoers willing to
dive into a hefty volume, the commentary does not assume its readers possess
more than a little knowledge of the relevant first-century historical context
and the terminology of critical biblical scholarship. Sidebars, printed in
contrasting color and font and sprinkled throughout the text, provide
additional information on linguistic matters, historical backgrounds, and
interpretive questions. The series preface insists that this contributes to a
"user-friendly" layout for a "visual generation." What some
users find amicable, however, others nevertheless may experience as
distracting. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">The
Smyth & Helwys format requires Chance to separate "commentary" on
a section of biblical text from "connections" he draws between the
text and the contemporary church. While the "commentary" sections
provide a competent and thorough overview of the Acts narrative, they do not
enter into explicit conversation with a wide range of other interpreters. The
sparse endnotes and numerous sidebars (perhaps an effort to maintain a
"user-friendly" resource), direct readers to only a limited amount of
secondary sources, mostly Bible dictionaries and a small sampling of
comprehensive commentaries that are at least ten years old (commentaries by
Joseph Fitzmyer, Luke Timothy Johnson, John Polhill, and Ben Witherington
receive the most attention). Some pivotal interpretive issues that could
intrigue many students of Acts are simply underdeveloped. For example, there is
little sustained attention given to the sociopolitical consequences of the
gospel in various cultural settings, particularly as portrayed in Acts 16-19.
Also, Chance's consistent claim, echoing Ernst Haenchen and others, that Luke
portrays Christianity as nonthreatening to Roman interests, is more assumed
than demonstrated. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">To add substance to his exposition, Chance reads the Acts
narrative in light of other material from the first-century world, including
the Pauline corpus. Although he occasionally notes the difficulties in
reconciling the messages of Luke and Paul, for the most part Chance finds
complementarity if not consistency between their theological claims.
Considering the theology of Acts in concert with the book's literary and
historical facets, Chance explains how Luke could have exercised certain
creative freedom and still been a legitimate historian, but he usually abstains
from issuing his own opinions in debates about the historical veracity of the
events Luke depicts. He clearly states that weighing in on those debates is not
his aim, and he rightly regards most of them as dependent on speculation
determined by an interpreter's theological and methodological presuppositions.
Still, the commentary often must acknowledge specific exegetical controversies
concerning history or Luke's possible use of sources. When it does so, it
briefly cites voices from opposing perspectives, showcasing only
hyper-credulity (usually represented by Ben Witherington) and hyper-skepticism
(Gerd Lüdemann often fills this role), and then drops the matter. Such an
approach may be efficient, but it is akin to watching the old CNN show <i>Crossfire:
</i>one finds nearly polarized opinions but is hardly invited either to
appreciate the nuances of the issues on the table or to grasp their
implications.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 0.45pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Chance reserves the right to
remain noncommittal on many historical matters in order to keep the commentary
concentrated on its main aim. He is hardly unaware that the narrative and
theology of Acts exist amid questions of historiography and genre,
considerations of the first-century social milieux, and the book's long reception
history. Although the commentary de-emphasizes those topics to facilitate a
creative engagement with the God and gospel of Acts, it would be a loss were
some readers to conclude that historical considerations have little bearing on
the theology of a biblical narrative. Perhaps an unstated intention also guides
Chance's commentary: to divert readers from getting locked into an exegetical
task that possesses merely penultimate value yet captivates many interpreters,
namely, assessing the degree to which Acts reflects tendentiousness as a report
of ancient history. </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 1.65pt 0pt 0.45pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Because they are the commentary's
most noteworthy feature, Chance's theological proposals are the rightful focus
for any evaluation of his book. He deserves credit for taking seriously the
challenge of describing for a broad range of readers how Acts might inform
Christian faith, piety, and ministry today. As mentioned, the working out of
God's purposes is a prominent and thoughtful piece of Chance's theological
discussions. The "connections" section of each chapter draws
theological lessons from Acts around other topics such as the inclusion of
women in the life and leadership of churches; the nature of Christian devotion,
character, and obedience; the task of bearing witness to nonbelievers; the
practice of baptism and its connections to the Holy Spirit; and the ways in
which people respond to the call of God. Although each of these issues pertains
to a wide variety of faith communities, taken together, they suggest a
particular concern for a Baptist milieu, perhaps the context of the
commentary's intended audiences. </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0.7pt 0pt 0.35pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Also worth noting is Chance's reading of the
relationship in Acts between the adherents of the gospel and those Jews who
reject or oppose it. As seen especially in the commentary's attentive
discussion of Acts 13, Chance associates this aspect of the story with accounts
of Gentiles who respond positively to the gospel. In all cases, among all
audiences, the gospel encounters mixed and sometimes unexpected reactions. When
Acts includes harsh judgments to or about Jewish characters, it does not
denounce Judaism as a whole but calls out the specific "characters who
embody the kind of exclusive spirit that resists the universal gospel" (p.
419). Even the ending, including Paul's words to the Jews of Rome, underscores
this mixed reaction. For Chance, this is nothing new, for the story of God
throughout Scripture is fraught with instances of resistance and rebellion.
But, again in Acts, even as God's representatives scold this opposition, God
remains ever faithful. </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 2.75pt 0pt 0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Chance's commentary, therefore,
pursues many of the weighty theological questions that Acts can raise for
contemporary believers. It will be a helpful resource for Christian readers and
communities who seek continuity between their experiences of faith and Luke's
high-spirited story of the early church. </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Matthew L. Skinner</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">LUTHER
SEMINARY</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">SAINT
PAUL, MINNESOTA</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Zie ook: </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><a href="http://www.bookreviews.org/pdf/6893_7468.pdf"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://www.bookreviews.org/pdf/6893_7468.pdf</span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"></span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://whichcommentary.blogspot.nl/2012/01/welk-bijbelcommentaar-en-waarom.html" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">Back: commentaren overzicht</span></strong></a></span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://commentariesandreviews.blogspot.nl/2012/01/startbibliotheek-nt.html" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">Back: Starting Library NT</span></strong></a></span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />E. van Wijkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02896627319013041491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-714947661312717398.post-53252068436593948362013-02-21T06:41:00.000-08:002013-02-21T06:41:18.781-08:00Review of: Jack R. Lundbom, Jeremiah 37-52: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary (AB 21C), Doubleday, 2004; in: Interpretation<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Jack R. Lundbom</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">, </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Jeremiah 37-52:
A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary (AB 21C), </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Doubleday, 2004</span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">.</span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Review in: <i>Interpretation</i>
2005 59: 412 <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Review door:
Kathleen M. O'Connor<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Gevonden op: </span></span></span><a href="http://int.sagepub.com/content/59/4/412.full.pdf+html"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://int.sagepub.com/content/59/4/412.full.pdf+html</span></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 37.15pt 0pt 0cm;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Jeremiah
21-36: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<i><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">by Jack R. Lundbom </span></i><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The Anchor Bible 21B.
Doubleday, New York, 2004. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">649 pp. $68.00
(cloth). ISBN 0-385-41113-8. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 37.05pt 0pt 0cm;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Jeremiah
37-52: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<i><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">by Jack R. Lundbom </span></i><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The Anchor Bible 21C.
Doubleday, New York, 2004. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">624 pp. $68.00
(cloth). ISBN 0-385-51160-4. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">JACK LUNDBOM, ALONG WITH Phyllis Trible and Walter
Brueggemann, was a student of James Muilenburg, the eloquent articulator of
rhetorical-criticism for biblical studies. Lundbom is a well-known practitioner
of rhetorical-criticism and a highly regarded interpreter of the book of
Jeremiah. The publication of the second and third volumes of his Anchor Bible
commentary concludes a massive labor of love on his part and marks a welcome
addition to Jeremiah studies. For biblical scholars and teachers, these works
are treasure troves of information, exposition, and interpretation relating to
Jeremiah's ferocious book. For pastors seeking help with sermon preparation or
theological reflection, I am not so sure.</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">The
difficulties lie in the format of the Anchor Bible Series that presses heavily
upon matters of text, translation, history, and interpretive problems. Lundbom
imparts vast amounts of information about these in lucid prose on each portion
of the text. He is highly appreciative of Jeremiah's rhetoric in its linguistic
creativity, multiple genres, metaphors, and persuasive claims. The books can
serve ministers well by laying the groundwork for theological and hermeneutical
reflection, but they are theologically thin and require readers to integrate
the material from the commentary's multiple sections themselves. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">The two new volumes do not stand alone
but need to be read in conversation with the "Introduction" to the
first volume <i>(Jeremiah 1-20,</i>1999, 55-151). There Lundbom lays out the
rhetorical-critical method and discusses other critical questions of canon,
divergences between the Hebrew and Greek versions of Jeremiah, relationships
between poetry and prose, division of the book into literary units, historical
settings of the book, and the life and ministry of the prophet Jeremiah. This
first volume is worth acquiring for its clear, detailed exposition of
rhetorical criticism (pp. 68-101). Lundbom teaches readers how to decide genre
and boundaries of texts and how to discover structural elements and the
"configuration of their component parts" (p. 72). By discovering the
text's effects, he shows how to identify the text's claims upon readers and
makes it possible for readers to do similar work themselves. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 1.9pt 0pt 0.35pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">The
commentaries follow a four-part division: "Translation" of the
section of the text under consideration, "Rhetoric and Composition,"
"Notes," and "Message and Audience." Lundbom's translation
for each volume appears in continuous form at the front of the book and is
repeated section by section in the commentary. He captures the cadences and
heated imagery of Jeremiah's poetry. His word order, faithful to the Hebrew, is
often surprisingly effective in English. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0.7pt 0pt 0.1pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">By
far the most original contribution of these commentaries appears in the
"Rhetoric and Composition" section where Lundbom applies
rhetorical-criticism with fulsome, scrupulous detail. He uncovers how the text
creates its power, musicality, and rushing force. In the process, he names
structural features from a variety of perspectives and represents them in graphs.
For example, on Jeremiah's narrative polemic against emigres to Egypt (Jer
44:1-30), Lundbom divides the text in half according to the chapter's two
superscriptions and further divides the two parts on the basis of Hebrew
grammatical markings of closing and opening that coincide with genre divisions
(poetic oracles or narrative). With a second graph, he presents structuring
elements such as repeated syntactic structures, key words, and repeated
vocabulary. Finally, he divides the chapter in yet another way on the
chronological basis of past, present, and future. These accumulating literary
features reveal a text that speaks of evil in the past, present, and future. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 0.2pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">With refreshing new insight arising from his literary work,
Lundbom calls into question standard assumptions of Jeremiah studies. First, he
disputes the view that the more complex Hebrew version, by contrast to the
leaner Septuagint translation, is not the result of scribal errors and
additions. The expansive Hebrew text of Jer 44, for example, indicates
"vigorous discourse, something akin to the music of an organist who ends a
grand performance by pulling out all the stops" <i>(Jeremiah 37-52, </i>p.
155). Such is Lundbom's sense of the literature's power. Second, Lundbom
challenges the long-held assumption that Jeremiah comprises three or more
pre-existing literary documents combined in haphazard fashion. From his close
literary readings, he concludes that a far more inventive literary process
takes place in this book than a rough editorial patching would allow. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 1.4pt 0pt 0.1pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">"Notes"
on text and translation are amazingly thorough. They attend to deviations
between the Septuagint and the Hebrew translations and offer detailed
information about place names, unfamiliar terms, and cross references to texts biblical
and otherwise, ancient and modern. For example, Lundbom includes a lengthy
accounting of the double spelling in Jeremiah of the Babylonian emperor's name,
Nebuchadrezzar and Nebuchadnezzar. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Although the analytic divisions of
Lundbom's commentary are deeply erudite and clearly written, I find little
integration among its various levels of analysis. The "Message and
Audience" sections are the most disappointing throughout the two volumes.
I expected to find in them a synthesis of material so far discussed or a
highlighting of central themes and images, culminating in theological questions
or reflections on meaning in the passage or in relation to the whole book.
Instead, these entries generally paraphrase the text almost in a pre-critical
fashion, as if one could successfully interpret the text at face value.
Paraphrases of the text's "message" generally make little or no
reference to the preceding analysis and leave readers to assimilate the various
sections of the work on their own. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 1.55pt 0pt 0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">By "message," Lundbom typically means a
straightforward retelling of the passage. By "audience," he means the
groups in the population named in the text under study rather than the
"implied audience" of the book itself. Sometimes the audience is the
whole community, or kings, or priests, or in Jer 44, the expatriots in Egypt
with whom Jeremiah is immensely angry. But what are the text's claims upon the
readers? How might passages have functioned for the audience of the book? Why,
for example, is Jer 44 preserved and included in this part of the book and not
elsewhere in the redaction? How does it contribute to the life of Judeans and
to larger biblical theology that it should be preserved at all? In commenting
on the new covenant passage (31:31), however, Lundbom finds apt and startling
analogies between the text and the words of Martin Luther King, Jr. and between
other texts and words of Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Martin Luther's, and struggles
in present day Palestine. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 3.2pt 0pt 0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Among contemporary interpreters, "historical reliability"
of the accounts of Jeremiah's life and words are a subject of deep controversy.
Lundbom concludes the "Message and Audience" sections by dating
passages on the basis of the general history of the period. An appendix at the
end of <i>Jeremiah 37-52 </i>lists important dates of the period. Lundbom is no
historical literalist; he recognizes the difficulty of making an
"historically precise reconstruction" from some of the narrative
material (p. 51). Nonetheless, he trusts the text more than I do, particularly
in his presentation of Jeremiah's life. The large amount of
"biographical" information about Jeremiah may be recorded simply to
keep the details of his memory alive, but it is likely that the portrayal of
his life has further symbolic purposes to address the situation of a people
devastated by the Babylonian invasions. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 1.8pt 0pt 0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Most of the twelve appendices to the commentary are of great
help to general readers of the Bible: conversion tables of weights, measures,
and distances; extensive lists of differences between the Hebrew and Greek
versions; names and dates of archaeological periods; and even the names of the
months in the Jewish calendar, plus a glossary of rhetorical terms. Also
important are two excurses, "The New Covenant in the literature of
Judaism, including Qumran" and "The New Covenant in the New Testament
and Patristic literature to A. D. 325" <i>(Jeremiah 21-36). </i>Although
fine descriptive histories of theological interpretation, these two excurses
stop short of implicating modern Christians in anti-Semitism on the basis of
the new covenant interpretation. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 2.6pt 0pt 0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">I think Lundbom's commentary is too trusting of historical
information, and wish it were more attentive to critical theological questions,
and more integrative of its own information. However, I will use these
reference books often and with gratitude for the depth and breadth of their
scholarship on nearly everything concerning Jeremiah. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 143.75pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Kathleen M. O'Connor</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">COLUMBIA THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">DECATUR, GEORGIA</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: NL; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: NL; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: NL; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><o:p><a href="http://commentariesandreviews.blogspot.com/2012/01/advanced-ot-commentaries.html" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">BACK: ADVANCED OT</span></strong></a></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><strong></strong></span><o:p><a href="http://whichcommentary.blogspot.nl/2012/01/welk-bijbelcommentaar-en-waarom.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><strong>BACK: NAAR OVERZICHT</strong></span></a></o:p></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span></span><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"></span><br />E. van Wijkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02896627319013041491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-714947661312717398.post-82104999804068907292013-02-21T06:39:00.006-08:002013-02-21T06:40:03.854-08:00Review of: Jack R. Lundbom, Jeremiah 21-36: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary (AB 21B), Doubleday, 2004; in: Interpretation<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Jack R. Lundbom</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">, </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Jeremiah
21-36: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary (AB 21B), </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Doubleday, 2004</span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">.</span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Review in: <i>Interpretation</i>
2005 59: 412 <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Review door:
Kathleen M. O'Connor<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Gevonden op: </span></span></span><a href="http://int.sagepub.com/content/59/4/412.full.pdf+html"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://int.sagepub.com/content/59/4/412.full.pdf+html</span></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 37.15pt 0pt 0cm;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Jeremiah
21-36: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<i><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">by Jack R. Lundbom </span></i><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The Anchor Bible 21B.
Doubleday, New York, 2004. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">649 pp. $68.00
(cloth). ISBN 0-385-41113-8. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 37.05pt 0pt 0cm;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Jeremiah
37-52: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<i><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">by Jack R. Lundbom </span></i><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The Anchor Bible 21C.
Doubleday, New York, 2004. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">624 pp. $68.00
(cloth). ISBN 0-385-51160-4. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">JACK LUNDBOM, ALONG WITH Phyllis Trible and Walter
Brueggemann, was a student of James Muilenburg, the eloquent articulator of
rhetorical-criticism for biblical studies. Lundbom is a well-known practitioner
of rhetorical-criticism and a highly regarded interpreter of the book of
Jeremiah. The publication of the second and third volumes of his Anchor Bible
commentary concludes a massive labor of love on his part and marks a welcome
addition to Jeremiah studies. For biblical scholars and teachers, these works are
treasure troves of information, exposition, and interpretation relating to
Jeremiah's ferocious book. For pastors seeking help with sermon preparation or
theological reflection, I am not so sure.</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">The
difficulties lie in the format of the Anchor Bible Series that presses heavily
upon matters of text, translation, history, and interpretive problems. Lundbom
imparts vast amounts of information about these in lucid prose on each portion
of the text. He is highly appreciative of Jeremiah's rhetoric in its linguistic
creativity, multiple genres, metaphors, and persuasive claims. The books can
serve ministers well by laying the groundwork for theological and hermeneutical
reflection, but they are theologically thin and require readers to integrate
the material from the commentary's multiple sections themselves. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">The two new volumes do not stand alone
but need to be read in conversation with the "Introduction" to the
first volume <i>(Jeremiah 1-20,</i>1999, 55-151). There Lundbom lays out the
rhetorical-critical method and discusses other critical questions of canon,
divergences between the Hebrew and Greek versions of Jeremiah, relationships
between poetry and prose, division of the book into literary units, historical
settings of the book, and the life and ministry of the prophet Jeremiah. This
first volume is worth acquiring for its clear, detailed exposition of
rhetorical criticism (pp. 68-101). Lundbom teaches readers how to decide genre
and boundaries of texts and how to discover structural elements and the "configuration
of their component parts" (p. 72). By discovering the text's effects, he
shows how to identify the text's claims upon readers and makes it possible for
readers to do similar work themselves. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 1.9pt 0pt 0.35pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">The
commentaries follow a four-part division: "Translation" of the
section of the text under consideration, "Rhetoric and Composition,"
"Notes," and "Message and Audience." Lundbom's translation
for each volume appears in continuous form at the front of the book and is
repeated section by section in the commentary. He captures the cadences and
heated imagery of Jeremiah's poetry. His word order, faithful to the Hebrew, is
often surprisingly effective in English. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0.7pt 0pt 0.1pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">By
far the most original contribution of these commentaries appears in the
"Rhetoric and Composition" section where Lundbom applies
rhetorical-criticism with fulsome, scrupulous detail. He uncovers how the text
creates its power, musicality, and rushing force. In the process, he names
structural features from a variety of perspectives and represents them in
graphs. For example, on Jeremiah's narrative polemic against emigres to Egypt
(Jer 44:1-30), Lundbom divides the text in half according to the chapter's two
superscriptions and further divides the two parts on the basis of Hebrew
grammatical markings of closing and opening that coincide with genre divisions
(poetic oracles or narrative). With a second graph, he presents structuring
elements such as repeated syntactic structures, key words, and repeated
vocabulary. Finally, he divides the chapter in yet another way on the
chronological basis of past, present, and future. These accumulating literary
features reveal a text that speaks of evil in the past, present, and future. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 0.2pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">With refreshing new insight arising from his literary work,
Lundbom calls into question standard assumptions of Jeremiah studies. First, he
disputes the view that the more complex Hebrew version, by contrast to the
leaner Septuagint translation, is not the result of scribal errors and
additions. The expansive Hebrew text of Jer 44, for example, indicates
"vigorous discourse, something akin to the music of an organist who ends a
grand performance by pulling out all the stops" <i>(Jeremiah 37-52, </i>p.
155). Such is Lundbom's sense of the literature's power. Second, Lundbom
challenges the long-held assumption that Jeremiah comprises three or more
pre-existing literary documents combined in haphazard fashion. From his close
literary readings, he concludes that a far more inventive literary process
takes place in this book than a rough editorial patching would allow. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 1.4pt 0pt 0.1pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">"Notes"
on text and translation are amazingly thorough. They attend to deviations
between the Septuagint and the Hebrew translations and offer detailed
information about place names, unfamiliar terms, and cross references to texts biblical
and otherwise, ancient and modern. For example, Lundbom includes a lengthy
accounting of the double spelling in Jeremiah of the Babylonian emperor's name,
Nebuchadrezzar and Nebuchadnezzar. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Although the analytic divisions of
Lundbom's commentary are deeply erudite and clearly written, I find little
integration among its various levels of analysis. The "Message and
Audience" sections are the most disappointing throughout the two volumes.
I expected to find in them a synthesis of material so far discussed or a
highlighting of central themes and images, culminating in theological questions
or reflections on meaning in the passage or in relation to the whole book.
Instead, these entries generally paraphrase the text almost in a pre-critical
fashion, as if one could successfully interpret the text at face value.
Paraphrases of the text's "message" generally make little or no
reference to the preceding analysis and leave readers to assimilate the various
sections of the work on their own. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 1.55pt 0pt 0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">By "message," Lundbom typically means a
straightforward retelling of the passage. By "audience," he means the
groups in the population named in the text under study rather than the
"implied audience" of the book itself. Sometimes the audience is the
whole community, or kings, or priests, or in Jer 44, the expatriots in Egypt
with whom Jeremiah is immensely angry. But what are the text's claims upon the
readers? How might passages have functioned for the audience of the book? Why,
for example, is Jer 44 preserved and included in this part of the book and not
elsewhere in the redaction? How does it contribute to the life of Judeans and
to larger biblical theology that it should be preserved at all? In commenting
on the new covenant passage (31:31), however, Lundbom finds apt and startling
analogies between the text and the words of Martin Luther King, Jr. and between
other texts and words of Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Martin Luther's, and struggles
in present day Palestine. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 3.2pt 0pt 0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Among contemporary interpreters, "historical reliability"
of the accounts of Jeremiah's life and words are a subject of deep controversy.
Lundbom concludes the "Message and Audience" sections by dating
passages on the basis of the general history of the period. An appendix at the
end of <i>Jeremiah 37-52 </i>lists important dates of the period. Lundbom is no
historical literalist; he recognizes the difficulty of making an
"historically precise reconstruction" from some of the narrative
material (p. 51). Nonetheless, he trusts the text more than I do, particularly
in his presentation of Jeremiah's life. The large amount of
"biographical" information about Jeremiah may be recorded simply to
keep the details of his memory alive, but it is likely that the portrayal of
his life has further symbolic purposes to address the situation of a people
devastated by the Babylonian invasions. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 1.8pt 0pt 0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Most of the twelve appendices to the commentary are of great
help to general readers of the Bible: conversion tables of weights, measures,
and distances; extensive lists of differences between the Hebrew and Greek
versions; names and dates of archaeological periods; and even the names of the
months in the Jewish calendar, plus a glossary of rhetorical terms. Also
important are two excurses, "The New Covenant in the literature of
Judaism, including Qumran" and "The New Covenant in the New Testament
and Patristic literature to A. D. 325" <i>(Jeremiah 21-36). </i>Although
fine descriptive histories of theological interpretation, these two excurses
stop short of implicating modern Christians in anti-Semitism on the basis of
the new covenant interpretation. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 2.6pt 0pt 0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">I think Lundbom's commentary is too trusting of historical
information, and wish it were more attentive to critical theological questions,
and more integrative of its own information. However, I will use these
reference books often and with gratitude for the depth and breadth of their
scholarship on nearly everything concerning Jeremiah. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 143.75pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Kathleen M. O'Connor</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">COLUMBIA THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">DECATUR, GEORGIA</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: NL; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: NL; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: NL; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><o:p><a href="http://commentariesandreviews.blogspot.com/2012/01/advanced-ot-commentaries.html" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">BACK: ADVANCED OT</span></strong></a></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><strong></strong></span><o:p><a href="http://whichcommentary.blogspot.nl/2012/01/welk-bijbelcommentaar-en-waarom.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><strong>BACK: NAAR OVERZICHT</strong></span></a></o:p></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span></span><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"></span><br />E. van Wijkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02896627319013041491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-714947661312717398.post-70283866909298810362013-02-21T06:38:00.002-08:002013-02-21T06:38:33.138-08:00Review of: Jack R. Lundbom, Jeremiah 1-20: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary (AB 21), Doubleday, 1999; in: Interpretation<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Jack R. Lundbom, </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Jeremiah 1-20: A New Translation with Introduction
and Commentary</span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> (</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">AB 21), Doubleday, 1999<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">.</span><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Review in: <i>Interpretation</i>
2001 55: 316 <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Review door: Mark E.
Biddle<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Gevonden op: </span></span></span><a href="http://int.sagepub.com/content/55/3/316.1.full.pdf+html"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://int.sagepub.com/content/55/3/316.1.full.pdf+html</span></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 6.45pt 0pt 0.6pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Jeremiah
1-20: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<i><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">by Jack R. Lundbom </span></i><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">AB 21. Doubleday, New
York, 1999. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">934 pp. $49.00 (cloth).
ISBN 0-385-4112-X. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></span></span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 0.1pt;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">LUNDBOM IS A LEADING PROPONENT of rhetorical criticism, a
discipline which "analyzes discourse ... asking questions about structure,
style, intention, impact upon an audience, and how together these create a
rhetorical situation" (pp. 69-70), and his commentary on Jeremiah focuses
extensively on the book's rhetoric. A lengthy introductory treatment of the
method prepares the reader for the procedure employed in the commentary proper.
There, each section begins with Lundbom's translation of the passage, followed
by an analysis of its "Rhetoric and Composition," "Notes"
(largely text critical, grammatical, historical, and form critical in nature),
and brief comments regarding its "Message and Audience." Lundbom
masterfully analyzes Jeremiah's literary structures and devices. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">With respect to the
major issues that have occupied Jeremiah scholarship in the most recent era,
Lundbom holds somewhat optimistic views. Although many students of Jeremiah
have abandoned the attempt to reconstruct Baruch's scroll (Jer 36), Lundbom
persists in the contention that it can be identified with some form of Jeremiah
1-20, the "First Edition" of the book (pp. 92-101). Despite
Jeremiah's complex editorial history, which many scholars regard as an obstacle
</span><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">to any "quest for the historical
Jeremiah," Lundbom confidently reconstructs details of Jeremiah's
biography from scant textual evidence (see pp. 340, 353). Indeed, Lundbom's
approach to the so-called "confessions" of Jeremiah closely resembles
an earlier era's now largely discredited psychological interpretation. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 3.7pt 0pt 0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Lundbom's positivism notwithstanding, his commentary is a
treasury of scholarship, rich in grammatical and literary analysis, in
interaction with the long history of Jeremiah scholarship, and in insights into
the theological relevance of the prophetic message. An extensive bibliography;
appendices documenting inscriptional evidence for the historicity of personal
names and cataloguing the dramatis personae, and listing instances of haplography
in the book; and indices of authors and scriptural references constitute
valuable supplements to the commentary. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 18.2pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">MARK E. BIDDLE </span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 18.35pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">BAPTIST THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY AT </span></div>
<div align="right" class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0.1pt 0pt 0cm; text-align: right; text-indent: 17.6pt;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">RICHMOND RICHMOND,
VIRGINIA<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: NL; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: NL; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: NL; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><o:p><a href="http://commentariesandreviews.blogspot.com/2012/01/advanced-ot-commentaries.html" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">BACK: ADVANCED OT</span></strong></a></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><strong></strong></span><o:p><a href="http://whichcommentary.blogspot.nl/2012/01/welk-bijbelcommentaar-en-waarom.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><strong>BACK: NAAR OVERZICHT</strong></span></a></o:p></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span></span><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"></span><br />E. van Wijkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02896627319013041491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-714947661312717398.post-72138335715930611732013-02-21T06:36:00.003-08:002013-02-21T06:36:58.933-08:00Review of: John Goldingay and David Payne, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Isaiah 40-55. 2 vols. (ICC), Τ. & Τ. Clark, 2006 (Vol. 1) & 2007 (Vol. 2); in: Interpretation<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "CTGRZ N+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">John
Goldingay and David Payne, </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Isaiah 40-55</span></i><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">. 2 vols. (ICC), </span><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "WPXRG I+ Times";">Τ. & Τ. Clark, 2006 (Vol. 1) &
2007 (Vol. 2).</span><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Review in: <i>Interpretation</i>
2009 63: 66 <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Review door:
Patricia K. Tull<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Gevonden op: </span></span></span><a href="http://int.sagepub.com/content/63/1/66.full.pdf+html"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://int.sagepub.com/content/63/1/66.full.pdf+html</span></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 19.8pt 0pt 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">A Critical and
Exegetical Commentary on Isaiah 40-55, Vol. 1 </span><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "WPXRG I+ Times";">(40:1-44:23)
</span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<i><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "CTGRZ N+ Times";">by John Goldingay and David Payne </span></i><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "CTGRZ N+ Times";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "WPXRG I+ Times";">International Critical Commentary. Τ
& Τ Clark, New York, 2006. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "WPXRG I+ Times";">368 pp. $120.00. ISBN 978-0-567-04461-0.
<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 19.8pt 0pt 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">A Critical and
Exegetical Commentary on Isaiah 40-55, Vol. 2 </span><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "WPXRG I+ Times";">(44:24-55:13)</span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<i><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "CTGRZ N+ Times";">by John Goldingay and David Payne </span></i><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "CTGRZ N+ Times";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "WPXRG I+ Times";">International Critical Commentary. Τ
& Τ Clark, New York, 2007. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "WPXRG I+ Times";">381 pp. $120.00. ISBN 978-0-567-03072-5.
<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "WPXRG I+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">A SERIES OF MISFORTUNES ranging from S.R. Driver's
frustration over the identity of Isaiah's servant to A.S. Peake's death
prevented the original International Critical Commentary's production in the
early twentieth century of volumes covering Isa 28-66. George B. Gray's work on
chs. 1-27 has stood alone for nearly a century. In the new edition of this
commentary series, Hugh G. M. Williamson's volume on Isa 1-27 appeared in 2006.
The two volumes on Isa 40:1-44:23 and 44:24-55:13, coauthored by John Goldingay
and David Payne, are a happy addition to the array of recent commentaries that
have benefited from ferment in the field of Isaiah studies over the past twenty
years.</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: "WPXRG I+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">It is strangely appropriate that a commentary on Isaiah should be
penned by multiple authors who have integrated their work into a whole.
Although the redactional layers of Isaiah can be detected but not proved,
Goldingay and Payne offer full disclosure, explaining not only who contributed
which elements, but also in what sequence the process was carried out. They
explain that Goldingay's volume, entitled </span><i><span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: "CTGRZ N+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">The Message of Isaiah
40-55: A Literary-Theological Commentary </span></i><span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: "WPXRG I+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">(T 8c Τ Clark, 2005),
includes much material that had to be excluded from the present work so that,
true to ICC emphases, Payne's text-critical and philological work could star in
these two volumes. Goldingay has also authored a one-volume New International
Bible Commentary on Isaiah (Hendrickson, 2001). <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "WPXRG I+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Goldingay's engagingly written introduction in
vol. 1 declines to rehearse issues that have been treated at length before,
appropriately presuming both awareness of the chain of events the book of
Isaiah presupposes and basic agreement with the long-standing consensus
concerning the approximate historical settings of Second and Third Isaiah. The
first two sections explore Second Isaiah as both a portion of the overall book
and as a discrete entity. The morass of redactional theories is stepped over
lightly. Clear links with First Isaiah and other pre-exilic literature are
noted. A sequential, synchronic, and—though the term is not
employed—reader-response orientation is signaled:</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 9.95pt 0pt 17.85pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">We treat 42:1-4 as taking up issues raised in 2:2-4 and
taking them further. Historically it may be that 2:2-4 is later than 42:1-4,
but if so, the book as we have it invites us to read the older passage in light
of the later one, and we are accepting that invitation, (p. 4) <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0.35pt 0pt 0.1pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-indent: 17.75pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">The authors raise five objections to the renewed practice,
mostly in continental Europe, of positing a complex redactional history within
the sixteen chapters. The section on text-critical matters draws a distinction
among what can be imagined by interpreters living in different eras (those of
manuscripts, printing presses, and word processors), noting that our era of
desktop publishing has allowed greater awareness of the problems surrounding
the idea of a single, fixed "original text." The authors resist pursuing
the unattainable original in favor of "something that at least has the
virtue of existing" (p. 9), and generally favor the MT over early
versions. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0.35pt 0pt 0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">The introduction goes on to discuss the poetic movement of
the sixteen chapters and the rhythm and forms of the poetry before spending
substantial time on the question of the intended audience and its time,
location, and identity. Utilizing Beuken's distinction between the audience on
stage (the one overtly addressed, which often includes symbolic figures or
elements of the natural world) and the audience "in the house" (the
one actually meant to overhear what is said), Goldingay explores the various
possibilities of prophet and audience location, finally choosing Babylon for
both, though leaving open the idea that other Judean audiences would have been
welcome as well. The final section of the introduction discusses the primary
theological messages of Isa 40-55 regarding God, God's people, Zion, the
prophet as servant, and the nations. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 1.3pt 0pt 0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">The section on the poet/prophet's own identity and stamp
upon the book is very interesting, but seems a bit flatfooted after the careful
distinctions between implied and real audiences. It could have benefited from
maintaining the stage analogy. On the one hand, there is a welcome discussion
of suggestions that the author was a woman. This idea is supported by the
prophet's intimate knowledge of and appreciation for the experiences of women,
the command in 40:9 to <i>mevasseret Zion </i>(translated not as "herald
Zion" but as "herald <i>[fern, sing] </i>to Zion"), and the
deliberate hiddenness of the prophet's identity. Since all of these can be
accounted for differently, Goldingay appropriately leaves the question open. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">On the other hand, he posits a
prophetic "I" in brief passages at 40:6 (following, despite the
above-mentioned preference, not the MT vocalization but LXX and Qumran; for the
difference see NRSV vs. Tanakh) and 48:16b, and more controversially, in the
first-person servant passages in Isa 49:1-6 and 50:4-9. The prospect of a
bearded female prophet is not the central problem here, but it does signal it.
In skirting past her, so to speak, by imagining her in disguise as a male
prophet, Goldingay unintentionally raises important distinctions (most easily
seen in first-person novels) among the author, the implied author, and the
constructed first-person voice of a speaking character, for example Huckleberry
Finn. However, the sixteen chapters are suffused with variously positioned voices,
many of whom speak of themselves as "I" or "we" (including
God, a heavenly voice, Jacob/Israel, idolators, Daughter Babylon,
Zion/Jerusalem, Zion's children, and a human chorus). Moreover, given the
function Goldingay attributes to this authorial adoption of the servant role—to
model a role for <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">other Judeans to adopt
as well—it seems odd for the otherwise self-effacing poet, so accomplished at
staging the actors, to suddenly step onto the stage with not one but two
authorial soliloquies. He becomes a character who has the same "name"
as the author, rather like Jonathan Safran Foer as a character in his own book
entitled <i>Everything Is Illuminated </i>(Penguin Books, 2003), except without
the self-critical jokes that make that character enjoyable. </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0.2pt 0pt 0.1pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Trying to place the prophet into the movement
between third-person and first-person treatments of the servant not only raises
the strange question of who took up the pen to endorse the author in 50:10-11.
(The suggestion that YHWH is the speaker here only throws us back into the
drama of voices.) On a larger scale, it also forces what seems like an
arbitrary positing of the servant as Israel in chs. 41 and 42, the prophet in
49 and 50, and both prophet and people in 52:13-53:12. It would seem less
strained to adopt a neighboring position that likewise tacks between individual
and collective interpretation, such as that the author draws from his or her
own struggles and hopes in order to project onto the stage a figure, modeled on
the prophets, who communicates the struggles, cares, and triumphs of any
Israelite who responds to Israel's divine call to servanthood. </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 2.75pt 0pt 0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">The commentary itself offers a
fresh line-by-line translation in the form of headers for discussions of
individual verses or portions of verses, but not in a continuous section that
would enable readers to capture the flow of the poetry and the translation.
These expositions are the heart of the commentary and will be most useful for
readers with Hebrew skills. Outside of Isa 52:13-53:12, where sections are offered
regarding the passage's links with other Isaian passages, form and background,
and history of interpretation, there is little space for topical and
theological issues raised by larger chunks of text, though these are presumably
found in Goldingay's companion volume. It is too bad that they are not
integrated into one larger smoothly-flowing whole, but perhaps there is some
ironic symmetry in Isaiah's three or more books having become one, and the
commentary on one of Isaiah's books having become three. </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 2.85pt 0pt 0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Isaiah 40-55 is unusually
challenging on both the macro and micro levels. To combine literary
sensibilities with traditional textual and historical methods is challenging as
well. These informative, careful, and copiously researched volumes respectably
fill a long-felt gap and will surely be sought as important reference works in
the study of Isaiah for decades to come. </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 143.85pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Patricia
K. Tull</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">LOUISVILLE PRESBYTERIAN
THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: NL; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><o:p><a href="http://commentariesandreviews.blogspot.com/2012/01/advanced-ot-commentaries.html" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">BACK: ADVANCED OT</span></strong></a></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><strong></strong></span><o:p><a href="http://whichcommentary.blogspot.nl/2012/01/welk-bijbelcommentaar-en-waarom.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><strong>BACK: NAAR OVERZICHT</strong></span></a></o:p></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span></span><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"></span><br />E. van Wijkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02896627319013041491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-714947661312717398.post-38710510483455317462013-02-21T06:35:00.000-08:002013-02-21T06:35:22.722-08:00Review of: Michael V. Fox, Proverbs 10–31: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary (AB), Yale University Press, 2009; in: Interpretation<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond-Italic; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Michael V. Fox, </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: FranklinGothic-Demi; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Proverbs
10–31: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary</span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: FranklinGothic-Demi; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">
(AB), </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Yale
University Press, 2009.</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond-Italic; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Review in: </span><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Interpretation </span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">2011 65: 194</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Review door: </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">William P. Brown</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Gevonden op: </span></span></span><a href="http://int.sagepub.com/content/65/2/194.full.pdf+html"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://int.sagepub.com/content/65/2/194.full.pdf+html</span></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: FranklinGothic-Demi; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Proverbs
10–31: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond-Italic; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">by
Michael V. Fox<o:p></o:p></span></i></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">The Anchor Yale
Bible. Yale University Press, New Haven, 2009. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">752 pp. $60.00
(cloth). ISBN 978-0-300-14209-9.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">WITH THE
PUBLICATION OF this volume, Michael Fox completes his work on the book of
Proverbs for the Anchor Yale Bible series. Like Fox’s first volume, </span><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond-Italic; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Proverbs
1–9 </span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">(2000), this commentary exhibits erudition and precision, achieving a
fine balance between detailed textual analysis and hermeneutical substance. As
an added bonus, Fox draws extensively from medieval Hebrew commentaries in his
explication of the biblical text. Together, these two volumes offer an
insightfully rich treatment of Proverbs.</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">This second
volume dives into the multitude of terse proverbs that constitute Prov 10‑29. Throughout,
Fox effectively works at undermining the dictum of the great paremiologist
Wolfgang Mieder: a proverb set in a collection is dead. The proverb is alive,
Fox insists, precisely in its potential, like a coin within its “particular
currency system” waiting to be spent (p. 484). While acknowledging that some
proverbs are arranged in “pairs” and “clusters,” suggesting “associative
thinking,” Fox sees no overall design in the collections, as others have.
Proverbs, rather, is like “a heap of jewels” in “sweet disorder” (p. 481).<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Many of these
“jewels” share common shapes. Fox helpfully refers to these shared structuresas
“templates.” Exact repetition among proverbs is rare; variation is the norm.
Among the wide array, Fox is able to distill certain commonalities of form and
language. These templates figure in the process of “proverb permutation,” a
literary evolution of syntax and wording that leads to the production of new
proverbs, “a creative dialectic between the old and the new” (p. 489). A
wonderful contemporary example cited by Fox is John F. Kennedy’s famous
aphorism, “Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for
your country” (p. 492). The saying was not created </span><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond-Italic; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">ex
nihilo </span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">but based on a much older proverb template shared by Calvin Coolidge,
King George VI, and Kahlil Gibran. Authorship loses its pertinence in the
evolutionary life of proverbs. A related strength of Fox’s commentary is his
analysis of poetic parallelism. Though proverbial couplets come in small
packages, they can generate a range of subtle relationships between their paired
lines. Many are “disjointed”: they leave a gap that the reader is invited to
fill in various ways. Others exhibit more obvious, banal connections; they were
“stamped out mechanically” (p. 489).</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">While exploring
the intricate and frequently provocative details of individual proverbs, Fox does
not entirely lose the forest for the trees. He dates the collections in chs.
10–29 to the eighth and seventh centuries B.C.E., a time of literacy expansion
and monarchic rule. Royal ideology runs rampant throughout these collections.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Given the
nature of Proverbs, most of Fox’s commentary is devoted to discussing
individual sayings. Two to three paragraphs of discussion, on average, cover
each proverb. The textually difficult ones receive more attention.
Occasionally, Fox discusses several together (e.g., 16:1–9, 10–15, 27–30),
because they exhibit “thematic clustering.” Fox discusses variations among
textual versions, engages the opinions of others, and notes connections and
parallels with other proverbs, both biblical and extra-biblical. Proverbs
22:17–23:11 constitute an expansive unit, which Fox appropriately calls the
“Amenemope Collection,” adapted from a particular corpus of Egyptian wisdom
literature.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">The final
chapters of Proverbs consist of four “appendices,” including “the words of
Agur” (30:1–9) and the “woman of strength” (31:10–31). The oracle of Agur is an
anomaly in Proverbs, precisely because Agur professes himself to be the most
ignorant of men. Fox argues that Agur confesses his lack of the knowledge of
God, a “specialized, esoteric knowledge of God’s ways, a knowledge accessible
only . . . to an elect few” (p. 855). Fox calls such knowledge “erudition” (p.
861), although the term seems misapplied. The knowledge to which Agur refers is
more esoteric than learned. Agur’s oracle is a “cautionary response to the
exaltation of wisdom” in Proverbs. For Agur, the fear of the LORD is not the
beginning but the replacement of wisdom (p. 957).<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">While Fox as a
rule gives definitive answers and powerful solutions to a host of exegetical cruxes
that have plagued wisdom scholarship, he does on occasion admit his own
bewilderment. His treatment of Prov 30:18–19(20) is telling, a passage meant to
evoke a sense of wonder about snakes, ships, and sex. On the one hand, he
admits to treating this passage “as a lyrical and romantic evocation of the
wonder of love” (p. 871). (But, I ask, how does that pertain to ships?) On the other
hand, as suggested by rabbinic interpreters, Fox wonders if the passage is
about the lack of leaving a trace, although how this is applicable to “the way
of a man with a maid” remains unclear. Fox remains wondering, and so do I. But
maybe that is the point. Perhaps some proverbs are simply meant to provoke
wonder. Period.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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</span><br />
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">The final
section of Proverbs has also sparked much debate among scholars. Frequently
labeled the “woman of valor” or more prosaically, “a capable wife” (NRSV), Fox
opts for what I consider to be the most obvious translation, the “woman of
strength.” Drawing from the fine work of Christine Yoder (despite certain
quibbles regarding provenance and dating), Fox argues that the figure profiled
in this final poem is real and not mythical, even though it “contradicts the
modern stereotype of women in ancient, male dominated societies” (p. 900). She
is by no means confined to her domicile; the home is her base of operations as
she buys real estate, produces linen, plants vineyards, and sells her
merchandise. Fox appropriately calls the poem an “encomium,” a form well-known
in Greco-Roman literature (p. 903). In addition, he traces the history of
interpretation from traditional Jewish to Christian to modern allegorical and
feminist interpretations. While noting similarities between the “woman of
strength” and “wisdom,” Fox finds nothing figurative about the former. She
belongs securely “on the map of humanity” kin to the “typical American farm
wife in the nineteenth century” (pp. 911–12). Yet she is also an ideal (p.
916).</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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</span><br />
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">So ends Fox’s
commentary, but not his volume. The last 147 pages consist of four essays with topics
that range from wisdom ethics and knowledge to revelation. Sapiential thought,
Fox argues, is based not so much on empiricism as on a “coherence theory of
truth.” By that, Fox means an interrelated system of moral aesthetics. True
enough, but as Fox himself admits, Proverbs gets at its truth by “focus[ing] on
the normal. . . . It sees an orderly world” (p. 975), and that involves some measure
of empirical observation. Although empiricism does not lie at the heart of
wisdom’s method, it does, I would argue, reside at its edge. Finally, Fox gives
a schematic accounting of the development of the concept of wisdom. At its
earliest stage, evidenced in the oldest collections of Proverbs, wisdom remains
pragmatic and prudential. Whereas righteousness is static, wisdom is developmental:
it requires continual learning. In later stages, wisdom becomes increasingly
religious at its core (see 1:7; 2:5–6) and virtuous in its scope. In the final
stage (e.g., 1:20–33; 3:13–20; 8:1–35; 9:1–18), wisdom “transcends the human
mind and permeates all space and all time” (p. 932). The figure of “Lady Wisdom
represents the transcendent universal of wisdom” (p. 933).<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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</span><br />
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">These final
essays provide a measure of coherence to the nature of wisdom in Proverbs. I would
have appreciated at least one more essay, a discussion of the literary
coherence of Proverbs as a book. By that, I do not mean charting the various
stages of compositional and redactional growth, which Fox has ably done. I
mean, rather, the overall movement of the book from beginning to end, its “plot.”
What does it mean to read Proverbs in light of its prologue (1:1–7) and introduction
(chs. 1–9)? How does the encomium provide a fitting conclusion to the book?
These questions are left unaddressed, at least overtly.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Given its
length and detail, Fox’s commentary would be too formidable for many readers if
it were not for his highly readable and frequently engaging style. Fox delights
in using metaphor and pithy language, not unlike the sages themselves, to get
his points across. His writing sparkles as much as it resonates with deep
insight. For the time being, Fox’s commentary is the commentary of commentaries
on Proverbs.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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</span><br />
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">William P. Brown</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">COLUMBIA THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">DECATUR, GEORGIA</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: NL; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><o:p><a href="http://commentariesandreviews.blogspot.com/2012/01/advanced-ot-commentaries.html" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">BACK: ADVANCED OT</span></strong></a></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><strong></strong></span><o:p><a href="http://whichcommentary.blogspot.nl/2012/01/welk-bijbelcommentaar-en-waarom.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><strong>BACK: NAAR OVERZICHT</strong></span></a></o:p></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span></span><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"></span><br />E. van Wijkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02896627319013041491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-714947661312717398.post-81308075038336384312013-02-21T06:30:00.001-08:002013-02-21T06:41:52.196-08:00Review of: Joseph Blenkinsopp, Isaiah 56–66: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary (AB 19B), Doubleday, 2003; in: Irish Theological Quarterly<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Goudy; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Joseph Blenkinsopp, </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Goudy-Bold; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Isaiah 56–66: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary</span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Goudy-Bold; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Goudy; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">(AB
19B), Doubleday, 2003.</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Review in: </span><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Irish Theological
Quarterly </span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">2006 71: 353</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Review door: </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Michael Maher</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Gevonden op: </span></span></span><a href="http://itq.sagepub.com/content/71/3-4/353.full.pdf+html"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">http://itq.sagepub.com/content/71/3-4/353.full.pdf+html</span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Goudy-Bold; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Isaiah 56–66: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Goudy; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">(The Anchor Bible,
vol. 19B). <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Goudy; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">By Joseph Blenkinsopp.
New York: Doubleday, 2003. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Goudy; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Pp. Xvi</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: MathematicalPi-One; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">+</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Goudy; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">348. Price $45.00.
ISBN 0-385-50174-9.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
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</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Goudy; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Having published
commentaries on Isaiah 1–39 (2000) and Isaiah 40–55 (2002) Professor
Blenkinsopp brings his Anchor Bible commentary on the whole Book of Isaiah to a
conclusion with this masterful exposition of the chapters that have been known
as Trito-Isaiah since the time of Bernhard Duhm (1892). As one would expect, he
follows the same method of presentation as in the two earlier volumes. He
begins by offering the reader a new translation of the eleven chapters that are
the focus of his attention in this volume. He divides the text into twenty-five
sections of different lengths and he supplies each section with an appropriate
heading. The text is presented as </span><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Goudy-Italic; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">recitative verse</span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Goudy; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">, a term which, as
Blenkinsopp says in his first volume, allows for variations in rhythmic regularity
and cadence. The translation of each section is printed again at the point
where the commentary on that particular section begins, this time with the
addition of a number of textual notes to explain Blenkinsopp’s choice of this
or that reading. I would describe the translation as both literal and literary,
in the sense that the translator remains very close to the original Hebrew
while providing us with a fluent text that reads well. Blenkinsopp’s
translation of one particular word in 59:2b attracted my attention in a special
way. His rendering is, ‘Your sins have concealed the Face from me.’ The ancient
versions (Targum, Syr., Vulg. LXX) and modern translations have, ‘Your sins
have concealed his face from me.’ Blenkinsopp retains the MT </span><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Goudy-Italic; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">panim</span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Goudy; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">, ‘face,’ which he
understands as a technical term for God’s presence. This interpretation of
‘face’ in 59:2b has been proposed before, but it seems to me to be less than convincing.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Goudy; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">The translation of
chapters 56–66 is followed by an introduction of more than sixty pages. This
begins with a short account of the history of the interpretation of Isaiah
56–66 since the time of Duhm, and with a consideration of the relationship of chapters
56–66 to chapters 40–55 and 1–39. It is Blenkinsopp’s view that, ‘In subject
matter, tone, and emphasis chapters 56–66 are distinct enough to warrant
separate treatment, yet they belong on the same textual and exegetical
continuum as chapters 40–55.’ Indeed, he asserts that chapters 56–66 can be
read as ‘an exegetical extension or </span><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Goudy-Italic; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Fortschreibung </span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Goudy; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">of 40–45.’ The
relationship of chapters 56–66 to 1–39 is much less clear. In terms of the great
general themes, all sections of Isaiah have much in common. But there are
relatively few sayings in 56–66 that betray familiarity with sayings in 1–39 that
are deemed by most commentators to be proto-Isaianic. In discussing the literary
character of chapters 56–66 Blenkinsopp states that the influence of Deuteronomic
language and theology can easily be detected in these chapters. From the point
of view of literary quality he does not rate this section of Isaiah very
highly. These chapters are not </span><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Goudy-Italic; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">belles lettres</span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Goudy; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">, but polemical
writings designed to advance particular causes and to make an impact on the
course of events. With regard to the structuring of the text, Blenkinsopp makes
his own the commonly accepted view that chapters60–62 form the central core of
Trito-Isaiah. These chapters are quite distinctfrom the four chapters that
precede them and the four that follow. In trying to establish a date for the
composition of Isa 56–66 Blenkinsopp gives special consideration to the ‘</span><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Goudy-Italic; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">abadim </span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Goudy; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">of 65:13–14 and
the </span><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Goudy-Italic; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">haredim</span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Goudy; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">, ‘tremblers,’ who
are mentioned four times in Isa 66 and Ezra 9–10. His discussion of the
fortunes of the ‘tremblers’ allows him to conclude, if only provisionally and
tentatively, that Isa 65–66 reflect the situation in the province of Judah from
shortly before the activity of Ezra (458) to the arrival of Nehemiah (445).
Apart from these two chapters (65–66) and a few other scribal addenda, the rest
of the material in chapters 56–66 would be earlier.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Goudy; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Blenkinsopp
believes that one should use both the synchronic and diachronic approaches when
discussing the arrangement of Isa 56–66 as they have come down to us. He
himself discovers the outline of a pyramidal structure in these chapters with
chapters 60–62 forming the apex of the pyramid. Extending out in both
directions from this apex he finds a series of parallel passages moving toward
the base. Thus 59:15b-20 is parallel to 63:1–6; 59:1–15a parallels 63:7–64:11;
56:9–58:14 is parallel to 65:1–16; finally, 56:1–8, the opening verses of
Trito-Isaiah, is parallel to 66:18–24, with which it ends, and these two blocks
form the base of the pyramid. He admits that few if any of these parallels are
completely symmetrical. But the structure does allow us to conclude that the
diverse material of chapters 56–66 has been deliberately arranged according to
an aesthetic and thematic plan. This understanding of the structure of
Trito-Isaiah is ingenious, and although it may not convince everyone, it has
the merit of offering a plausible theory about the literary composition of
those chapters.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Goudy; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Blenkinsopp
believes that Isa 56–66 depend on and borrow from chapters 40–55. His
explanation of the dependence is that individual texts from 40–45 were taken
over, expanded and adapted by later readers and writers who believed that
Deutero-Isaiah’s message was still relevant. The numerous similarities between
Isa 40–66 and the Deuteronomic corpus indicate that those who handed on,
developed, and reinterpreted the ideas of chapters 40–55 that are incorporated
in 56–66, belonged to the Deuteronomic school in the period after the
destruction of Jerusalem. This process of handing on and developing earlier
traditions is what Blenkinsopp calls </span><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Goudy-Italic; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Fortschreibung.<o:p></o:p></span></i></span></span></div>
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</span><br />
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Goudy; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">In a short section
in which he discusses the Hebrew text and the ancient versions of Isa 56–66,
Blenkinsopp argues that the text of these chapters has been well preserved and
that he found few instances in which emendationof the Masoretic text seemed to be
called for. After a short section (pp.71–76) on Isa 56–66 in Jewish-Christian polemic
and in early Christianity, Blenkinsopp goes on to discuss aspects of theology
in these chapters. Since Trito-Isaiah is to be dated in the period following
the return from the <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Babylonian exile it
was addressed to a people who were in a state of disorientation and
disillusionment. It is apparent from these chapters that religious observance
among the people was merely formal. There was rampant injustice, murders were
frequent, the poor were neglected, and syncretistic rites were being practised.
Isa 56–66 respond to this discouraging situation, addressing the people in a
homiletic style that is strongly influenced by the Deuteronomists. The monarchy
had come to an end at this time and there were large settlements of Jews in Babylon
and in Egypt. Trito-Isaiah addresses Jews everywhere as God’s holy people
(62:12), and foreigners and eunuchs are accepted as members of the community
(56:1–7). This final section of Isaiah also gives us important insights into
the piety of the early post-exilic period when prayer was beginning to gain
prominence at the expense of sacrifice.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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</span><br />
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Goudy; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Following the
extensive and informative introduction, Blenkinsopp supplies the reader with a
rich bibliography that covers the period from T.K. Cheyne’s commentary in 1882
to an article by A.S. van der Woude in 1999. This brings us to the commentary proper
which deals in turn with each of the twenty-five sections into which, as
earlier stated, Blenkinsopp divides the text of Isa 56–66. The commentary on
each section begins with a bibliography that is relevant to that particular section,
and this is followed by Blenkinsopp’s translation of the verses in question. As
noted already, the translation of each section is accompanied by judicious
textual notes. One important feature of the commentary is the way in which
Blenkinsopp draws attention to the stylistic, linguistic, and thematic
characteristics that link Trito-Isaiah with both Isa 1–39 and especially with
chapters 40–55. He also enters into dialogue with many scholars who have
contributed to the study of Isaiah, and he gives a fair hearing to proponents of
theories that he may reject. In discussing Isa 56:1–8 Blenkinsopp writes that,
‘The passage is coherent and well organized and makes its point elegantly and
economically.’ The same can be said of Blenkinsopp’s commentary. He too makes
his points elegantly and economically. He has shown sensitivity to the
historical, literary, and theological issues that are raised by Isa 56–66, and
has given us a commentary that is well informed, balanced, reliable and readable.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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</span><br />
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: Goudy; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">MICHAEL MAHER MSC</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<i><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: Goudy-Italic; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Mater Dei Institute,</span></i></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<i><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: Goudy-Italic; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Dublin</span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><o:p><a href="http://commentariesandreviews.blogspot.com/2012/01/advanced-ot-commentaries.html" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">BACK: ADVANCED OT</span></strong></a></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><strong></strong></span><o:p><a href="http://whichcommentary.blogspot.nl/2012/01/welk-bijbelcommentaar-en-waarom.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><strong>BACK: NAAR OVERZICHT</strong></span></a></o:p></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span></span><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"></span><br />E. van Wijkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02896627319013041491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-714947661312717398.post-38468580624614548002013-02-21T05:39:00.001-08:002013-02-21T06:24:16.023-08:00Review of: James A. Wharton, Job (Westminster Bible Companion), Westminster John Knox, 1999; in: Interpretation<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">James
A. Wharton, <i>Job</i> (</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Westminster Bible Companion), Westminster John Knox,
1999.</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Review in: <i>Interpretation</i>
2001 55: 84 <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Review door: Carol
A. Newsom<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Gevonden op: </span></span></span><a href="http://int.sagepub.com/content/55/1/84.1.full.pdf+html"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://int.sagepub.com/content/55/1/84.1.full.pdf+html</span></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 0.6pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Job
</span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
<i><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">by James A. Wharton </span></i><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Westminster
Bible Companion. Westminster John Knox, Louisville, 1999. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">191
pp. $16.95 ISBN 0-664-25267-2. </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 1.55pt 0pt 0.6pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">"CAN THERE BE A HUMAN BEING of
such incorruptible integrity toward God and people that not even the worst
imaginable experiences of life are capable of shattering it?" (p. 19).
With this question, Wharton sums up the governing question of the Joban prose
tale and outlines the perspective through which he reads the whole book. The
introduction presents a brief but clear account of the structure of Job and the
reasons it has often been understood as a composite work. It also indicates how
one may read the book meaningfully as a whole. </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">The commentary departs only once from a simple sequential order. To help
the reader grasp the structure of the friends' arguments, Wharton treats all of
Eliphaz's speeches (chs. 4-5,15,22) together following Job 3. Although one
cannot speak of a consensus in the interpretation of Job, Wharton's reading
follows largely established hermenéutica! paths. Job's persistent integrity,
his</span><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> conviction
of ultimate vindication, and his vindication by means of God's answer are
hallmarks of Wharton's interpretation. </span><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 0.45pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">One can tell that Wharton has taught
the book of Job often. He knows instinctively where to pause to explain the
unfamiliar, where to address readerly resistance, and where to reflect on the
difference between the theology of Job and the theology of Christian
appropriation of the book. If there is a shortcoming in his commentary, it is
that it too quickly moves past some of what might be most disturbing in the
book. Stressing Job's conviction of ultimate vindication can distract from the
rawness of his accusations against God; stressing the function of the divine
speeches as vindication of Job can shortchange their utter strangeness. But
Wharton always urges the reader to form her own conclusions. Of all the
available commentaries on Job for lay readers, this is the one I recommend to
my students. Pedagogically and interpretively, it is an excellent example of
the genre. </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 18.45pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">CAROL A. NEWSOM</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">CANDLER SCHOOL OF THEOLOGY</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">EMORY UNIVERSITY</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">ATLANTA, GEORGIA</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Zie ook:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<a href="http://www.bookreviews.org/pdf/306_277.pdf"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://www.bookreviews.org/pdf/306_277.pdf</span></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: NL;"><a href="http://commentariesandreviews.blogspot.nl/2012/01/startbibliotheek-ot.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><strong><span style="font-size: large;">Back: </span></strong><span style="font-size: large;"><strong>Starting Library OT</strong></span></span></span></a></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: NL;"><a href="http://whichcommentary.blogspot.com/2012/01/welk-bijbelcommentaar-en-waarom.html"><strong><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">BACK: NAAR OVERZICHT</span></strong></a></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span>E. van Wijkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02896627319013041491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-714947661312717398.post-13173032876176899102013-02-21T05:36:00.004-08:002013-02-21T05:39:35.807-08:00Review of: Sharon Pace, Daniel (SHBC), Smyth & Helwys, 2008; in: Interpretation<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Sharon Pace, <i>Daniel</i>
(SHBC), Smyth & Helwys, 2008.</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Review in: <i>Interpretation</i>
2009 63: 298 <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Review door: W.
Sibley Towner<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Gevonden op: </span></span></span><a href="http://int.sagepub.com/content/63/3/298.full.pdf+html"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://int.sagepub.com/content/63/3/298.full.pdf+html</span></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Daniel </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">by <i>Sharon Pace </i><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The Smyth 8c Helwys Bible Commentary Series, Smyth &
Helwys, Macon, Ga., 2008.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">383 pp. $55.00 (cloth). ISBN 978-1-57312-074-6. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">MARQUETTE UNIVERSITY professor Sharon Pace has taken full
and admirable advantage of the wide scope that the format of the Smyth &
Helwys Bible Commentary series gives to each of its projected thirty-one
authors. Pace's volume is the fifteenth title in the series to have been
published so far, and judging from her book and those that have preceded it,
Smyth & Helwys and its editors and authors are seriously enriching the art
of biblical commentary in our time.</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Here is Pace's procedure. After a
summary introduction, Pace treats each chapter unit by unit, incorporating into
her exegetical discussion philological, historical, and literary-critical
observations. She misses no details. For example, in the judgment scene of Dan
7:9-10, the text reads "thrones were set in place." Obviously the
Ancient of Days needs a throne to sit on, but why, Pace wonders, is there a
second one? The discussion of a pericope may be followed by an excursus on the
history of its interpretation and always by a theological summary. At the end
of each chapter, Pace links the text to other Scriptures and to the
contemporary situation of Jews and Christians in a section called
"Connections." (One of the most interesting of these connections is
the lengthy exploration of musical portrayals of Belshazzar's Feast in Dan 5,
with special emphasis on the English composer William Walton's oratorio by that
name [pp. 184-89].) Pace's interpretation, while enriched throughout the book
with fresh insights and even the occasional universally applicable principle
(e.g., "God judges not only this one king [Nebuchadnezzar], but all kings
[2:21]," p. 64), is generally cautious and mainstream. For example, on the
question of the angelic vs. human identity of the "one like a son of
man" (Dan 7:13), Pace declines to take sides. Characteristically, she
warns that "No argument has won consensus" (p. 246). By the end of
ch. 7, however, given the disclosure by the angelic interlocutor to the seer
that the "one like a son of man" is "the holy ones of the Most
High" (7:18,22), and "the people of the holy ones of the Most
High" (7:27), Pace tends to see an integration of angels and elect humans
in the regime of the age to come. On the question of the dating of the Book of
Daniel, based on the vagueness at 11:40 after the relatively accurate chronicle
of foreign rule over Judea from the Persian empire through the Seleucid tyrant
Antiochus IV Epiphanes (175-164 B.C.E.), Pace says, "Many scholars
conclude that the date of the composition of the book of Daniel can be determined
by these remarks of Antiochus's last days" (p. 335). Clearly, she does,
too. In short, Pace offers no major new directions for the interpretation of
Daniel in this commentary, but what she gives us is a very readable,
user-friendly, and wide-ranging discussion of the book of Daniel. How often can
you honestly speak of a commentary as a page-turner? <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">The sidebars that appear on almost every page of the commentary
are intrinsic to the multidisciplinary approach of the Smyth & Helwys
series. In brief but intense bursts, they explore issues of language,
historical and cultural setting, and interpretation. For example, given that
Nebuchadnezzar's retainer Ashpenaz bears the title <i>sans </i>("guard,
eunuch," Dan 1:3), is it possible—as the rabbis speculated—that Daniel and
his friends were castrated in order to serve in the royal court (sidebar:
'"Eunuch'—Tragic Connotations," p. 27)? Occasionally a sidebar will
function as a history of interpretation piece. An example: various
identifications of the ten horns on the fourth beast in Dan 7:7 have, over the
centuries, given interpreters latitude to bring the vision down to their own
times (sidebar: "Examples of Identifications of the Ten Horns," p.
236). It is in the sidebars that Pace often invokes rabbinic interpretation
(sidebar: "Nebuchadnezzar in Ancient Jewish Sources," p. 37). <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 3pt 0pt 0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">As to the <i>kerygma </i>of Daniel, Pace
discerns two principal themes. The first is "the belief in a just God who
orders the universe according to a divine plan" (p. 13). The second is the
conviction that the oppressive kings and empires of Daniel's time and of all
time are "included in God's providential design and stand under divine
judgment. Nebuchadnezzar is presented more as a type of a ruler... than as an
individual" (p. 14). Understanding this king to be a prototype encourages
readers to believe that God will have done with tyrants and tyranny in every
generation. Pace adds, "the author shows that nothing in human experience
... remains outside of the divine plan" (p. 14). <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0.45pt 0pt 0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">No doubt the difficult doctrine of the
predetermination of history—inexorable destiny—is present in the book of
Daniel. But Pace offers little by way of bridging from this conviction to a
contemporary world that is skeptical of the notion that everything that happens
was already written in God's book of destiny. Today secular and faith
communities alike take seriously the realities of chance, randomness, and
accident. From time to time, however, Pace does restate the deterministic
theology of the book of Daniel in terms that are more attuned to our way of
thinking. In her summary discussion of Dan 10:1-12:13, for example,
predetermination is toned down in a statement like this: "The tireless
efforts of individuals who work for peace and justice give humanity pause so
that it neither despairs nor falls into a numb disregard for evil The book of
Daniel shows that it is possible for the human spirit to continue the search
for meaning in the midst of the unfathomable" (p. 347). Elsewhere, it
becomes clear that Pace's idea of the "interim ethic" implied in the
book of Daniel flows from trust that free choice to do well is possible. Such a
hope "can serve as a powerful encouragement never to abandon striving for
the betterment of the world" (p. 83). <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">One moral value to which Pace returns again and
again is justice. Even while acknowledging other theological themes such as
courage, faithfulness, and, in the end, resurrection, Pace takes it as a fixed
principle that God's rule is "passionately consumed with providing justice"
(p. 247). The restoration and advancement of justice are, for Pace, at the
heart of the representation of God and of human responsibility in the book of
Daniel.</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">On the vexing question of how a
failed apocalypse could retain the status of Scripture, Pace has relatively
little to say. In a sidebar on p. 336, she remarks that even though ancient
readers would have known that the details of the prediction of Antiochus's
death in Dan 11:45 were wrong (as well as, I might add, the expected concurrent
onset of the rule of the saints [7:27] and the resurrection of the dead
[12:1-3]), "they could nonetheless trust in the essential truth of the
vision." The book could therefore be preserved because it advances abiding
convictions, including the confidence that "God has set up the world so
that justice will prevail" (p. 336). </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Against the prevailing scholarly
view, Pace appears to side with Leonard Greenspoon in adducing evidence that
belief in an afterlife existed in Judaism before the first unambiguous
reference to resurrection appeared in Dan 12:1-3 (sidebar: "Others
Restored to Life," p. 340.) </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Large print, wide margins, numerous pictures,
charts, maps, and other elements of the graphic design of the commentary invite
the intended audience of scholars, pastors, and serious lay students of the
Bible to read the book with pleasure. The sidebars cast the net of welcome
inquiry even further. My only criticism of them is that the low intensity
reddish-brown color in which the sidebars are printed makes them difficult to
read. (I found myself twitching my glasses and adjusting my lamp many a time
while otherwise enjoying them.) In addition to a general bibliography, the book
concludes with four indices, including one for the sidebars. The entire text is
contained in an accompanying CD-ROM disc that is fully indexed and searchable.
This electronic version makes classroom use of text and illustrations instantly
accessible. </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-align: right;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">W. Sibley Towner, <i>Professor
Emeritus</i></span></span></span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">UNION-PSCE</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">RICHMOND,
VIRGINIA</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: NL;"><a href="http://commentariesandreviews.blogspot.nl/2012/01/startbibliotheek-ot.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><strong><span style="font-size: large;">Back: </span></strong><span style="font-size: large;"><strong>Starting Library OT</strong></span></span></span></a></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: NL;"><a href="http://whichcommentary.blogspot.com/2012/01/welk-bijbelcommentaar-en-waarom.html"><strong><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">BACK: NAAR OVERZICHT</span></strong></a></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span>E. van Wijkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02896627319013041491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-714947661312717398.post-39411754556024920502013-02-21T05:35:00.001-08:002013-02-21T05:35:29.596-08:00Review of: Margaret S. Odell, Ezekiel (SHBC), Smyth & Helwys, 2005; in: Theology Today<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Margaret S. Odell, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Ezekiel</i>
(SHBC), Smyth & Helwys, 2005.</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Review in: </span><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Theology Today </span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">2007 63: 504</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Review door: </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Jacqueline E.
Lapsley</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Gevonden op: </span></span></span><a href="http://ttj.sagepub.com/content/63/4/504.full.pdf+html"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://ttj.sagepub.com/content/63/4/504.full.pdf+html</span></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
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</span><br />
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Ezekiel<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Margaret S. Odell<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Macon, <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">CA: </span></span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Smyth </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">& Helwys, </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">2005. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">565 </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">pp. </span><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">$60.00.<o:p></o:p></span></i></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">The
Smyth </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">&
</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Helwys
commentary series, to which Margaret Odell’s commentary on Ezekiel belongs,
seeks to reach a wide audience of younger Christians with scholarly commentary
on biblical texts in a user-friendly and multimedia format. Without question,
Ezekiel could benefit from considerably more understanding in the wider culture
than it presently commands. Odell is to be congratulated on producing a fine
volume that should further that laudable goal.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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</span><br />
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Odell
is associate professor of religion at St. Olaf College and has been a core
member of the seminar studying Ezekiel in the Society of Biblical Literature for
many years. The commentary is therefore thoroughly researched, providing the
reader with a coherent and eminently readable interpretation of this prophetic
book. It is well informed by the plethora of recent work on Ezekiel and related
areas.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">The
commentary offers a wealth of detail on ancient Near Eastern iconography and
context (including lots of photographs) that often provides helpful background
for understanding Ezekiel. Odell explains this complex background carefully and
clearly and connects it to particular features in the biblical material. In the
“Connections” section at the end of each passage, Odell reflects theologically
on the passage, bringing Ezekiel into conversation with contemporary concerns.
These sections are often thoughtful, informative, and apt to provoke further
reflection. While reflecting on Ezekiel’s symbolic acts, for example, Odell
dissects the purity rules of our own culture and thereby illumines the ways in
which they blind us to the profundity of Ezekiel’s theology.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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</span><br />
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Despite
my general admiration <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">of </span>the
volume, I have a couple of reservations about Odell’s approach. My main qualm
is that the keen attention to ancient Near Eastern context leaves little room
to explore the literariness of Ezekiel’s text-how its theology is bound up in
the way the language of the text works. Odell does not adequately account for
an obvious but critical feature of the book: its strangeness. I suspect that in
Ezekiel, literariness and theology are inextricably entwined and that attention
to their intersection will help in unraveling the book’s undeniable weirdness.
Yet in this commentary, as in many others, the text of Ezekiel itself sometimes
disappears under the weight of the historical information deemed necessary to
understand it.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">An
illustration of my other qualm-the way particular theories sometimes take over
interpretation-occurs in the introduction. Odell outlines her theory that the
structure of the book of Ezekiel finds its source in Esarhaddon’s Babylonian inscriptions.
She provides a long historical excursus to back this claim. The argument is
based on circumstantial historical evidence of Ezekiel’s familiarity with
Assyrian models. The effect is strained. Moreover, it is difficult to discern,
even if the idea proves tenable, how such knowledge helps the reader understand
Ezekiel’s theology in a more profound way. Exposition of the theory does not
seem to deepen appreciation of Ezekiel’s theology but becomes a distraction to
it.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">The
commentary text is surrounded by various hyperlinks, each with its own icon to
indicate areas such as language-based concerns, historical issues, and
interpretations from across the ages (it also comes with a searchable CDROM). These
are sometimes helpful and illuminating. The inclusion of many visual
interpretations of Ezekiel’s visions is a welcome addition to the standard commentary
genre. For example, boxes offering thumbnail sketches of the history of
interpretation of a passage genuinely enlighten and enrich understanding. I
have a concern, however, about some of these “hip” features. Maybe because I do
not belong to the “visual generation of believers” to whom the book is
targeted, I find the fragmentation of the text into these various “boxes” to be
a bit disorienting on occasion (much in the way that postmodem pastiche can and
often tries to be). In the discussion of Ezekiel’s inaugural vision, for
instance, Odell begins with a brief reference to Calvin’s interpretation, but
then immediately the reader is “hyperlinked” to a fragment of a Rainer Maria
Rilke poem. The basic thematic connection to Ezekiel’s vision is apparent, but
the leap from one extracted thought of Calvin’s, to an extracted thought of
Rilke’s, then back to historical data of the sixth century BCE, while possibly
useful to preachers, is not an arrangement predisposed to foster genuine
understanding.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">I
suspect, however, that the multitasking mode necessary to read this and other
Smyth </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">&
</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Helwys
commentaries will come naturally to the “visual generation.” They will also
likely fare better with the faint peach-colored type in the hyperlinked boxes.
If they find Ezekiel more accessible and more interesting as a result, which
seems likely, then it will have been work well done.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Jacqueline E. Lapsley</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Princeton Theological Seminary</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Princeton, New Jersey</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Zie ook:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<a href="http://www.bookreviews.org/pdf/5493_5788.pdf"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://www.bookreviews.org/pdf/5493_5788.pdf</span></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"></span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: NL;"><a href="http://commentariesandreviews.blogspot.nl/2012/01/startbibliotheek-ot.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><strong><span style="font-size: large;">Back: </span></strong><span style="font-size: large;"><strong>Starting Library OT</strong></span></span></span></a></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: NL;"><a href="http://whichcommentary.blogspot.com/2012/01/welk-bijbelcommentaar-en-waarom.html"><strong><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">BACK: NAAR OVERZICHT</span></strong></a></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />E. van Wijkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02896627319013041491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-714947661312717398.post-90287663708047134152013-02-21T05:33:00.002-08:002013-02-21T05:33:37.697-08:00Review of: Susan Niditch, Judges: A Commentary (OTL), Westminster John Knox, 2008; in: Interpretation<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Susan
Niditch</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">, </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Judges: A
Commentary</span></i><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> (OTL), Westminster John Knox, 2008</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Review in: <i>Interpretation</i>
2009 63: 196 <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Review door: Carol
Meyers<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Gevonden op: </span></span></span><a href="http://int.sagepub.com/content/63/2/196.1.full.pdf+html"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://int.sagepub.com/content/63/2/196.1.full.pdf+html</span></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 0.35pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Judges:
A Commentary </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<i><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">by Susan Niditch </span></i><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Westminster
John Knox, Louisville, 2008. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">290
pp. $45.00 (cloth). ISBN 978-0-664-22096-9. </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 4.8pt 0pt 0.6pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">DRAWING UPON HER
considerable expertise in folklore studies, Susan Niditch examines the
"multilayered and multivoiced" book of Judges as a repository of
traditional and oral literature. Recognizing its marvelously diverse narrative
materials, she identifies three major voices, all emphasizing the role of God
in Israel's fate: </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 13.55pt 0pt 0.35pt;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">1) an epic-bardic voice, perhaps
dating to the late second millennium B.C.E., in Judg 5;<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 13.55pt 0pt 0.35pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">2) a covenant-oriented Deuteronomic
theologian, probably of the late monarchic period, in Judg 2 and in the hero
stories of chs. 3-16; and </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 1.65pt 0pt 0.35pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">3) a humanist voice with
nationalist interests, reflecting the postexilic era, in Judg 1 and 17-21. </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 1.15pt 0pt 0.35pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">The introduction provides a clear
summary of the characters and themes of Judges and of the major scholarly views
about its historicity, redaction, and versions. It also explains Niditch's
folkloristic approach, which involves sensitivity to the text, texture, and
context of biblical literature. </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">The commentary itself examines Judges chapter by chapter. For each
chapter, Niditch first offers her own translation, in which she strives to give
contemporary readers a sense of the oral and aural qualities of the
quasi-poetic text. The translation conveys the rhythms, word plays, and
repetitions of the Hebrew while adjusting to English word order. (An appendix
presents another version of the translation that is even closer to the word
order of the Hebrew original.) The translation is annotated with information
about selected words, phrases, and issues. The emphasis here is on textual
variants, which Niditch takes seriously as witness to the oral-world mentality
of biblical antiquity, in which different versions existed at the same time.
Niditch then briefly discusses the overall contents and "voice" of
the chapter and also, where appropriate, its possible authenticity. Finally,
she provides </span><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">an analysis
of each subunit of the chapter, focusing on the folkloric features of the
characters and reported events. In so doing she frequently points to parallels
with other biblical materials as well as comparative materials from other
cultures, especially from the Aegean. </span><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0.95pt 0pt 0.35pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Readers who expect a detailed treatment of virtually
every term and concept may be disappointed, but those who are eager to learn
how ancient audiences may have experienced the text will be richly rewarded.
Niditch also offers refreshing new insights into Israelite views of war,
violence, power, national leadership, ethnic identity, and women's roles. Her
interdisciplinary folkloristic approach, although lacking attention to issues
of collective memory, nonetheless delivers a lively exposition that does
justice to the vibrancy of this biblical book. </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 18.6pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">CAROL MEYERS</span></div>
<div align="right" class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 18.6pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">DUKE UNIVERSITY</span></div>
<div align="right" class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 18.6pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">DURHAM, NORTH
CAROLINA</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Zie ook:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<a href="http://www.bookreviews.org/pdf/6393_6881.pdf"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://www.bookreviews.org/pdf/6393_6881.pdf</span></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"></span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: NL;"><a href="http://commentariesandreviews.blogspot.nl/2012/01/startbibliotheek-ot.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><strong><span style="font-size: large;">Back: </span></strong><span style="font-size: large;"><strong>Starting Library OT</strong></span></span></span></a></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: NL;"><a href="http://whichcommentary.blogspot.com/2012/01/welk-bijbelcommentaar-en-waarom.html"><strong><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">BACK: NAAR OVERZICHT</span></strong></a></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />E. van Wijkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02896627319013041491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-714947661312717398.post-11789635388293675032013-02-21T05:31:00.001-08:002013-02-21T05:31:35.999-08:00Review of: James Limburg, Psalms (Westminster Bible Companion), Westminster John Knox, 2000; in: Interpretation<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">James
Limburg, <i>Psalms</i> (</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Westminster Bible Companion), Westminster John Knox,
2000.</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Review in: <i>Interpretation</i>
2002 56: 98 <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Review door: J.
Clinton Mccann, Jr.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Gevonden op: </span></span></span><a href="http://int.sagepub.com/content/56/1/98.2.full.pdf+html"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://int.sagepub.com/content/56/1/98.2.full.pdf+html</span></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Psalms </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<i><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">by James Limburg </span></i><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Westminster
Bible Companion. Westminster John Knox, Louisville, 2000. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">509
pp. $29.95. ISBN 0-664-25557-4. </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 2.6pt 0pt 0cm;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">IT IS CLEAR from the very beginning
of this volume that Limburg's work grows out of a lifetime of reading,
meditating upon, teaching, and preaching the Psalms. The editors of the series
aim at assisting the laity of the church, especially lay teachers, and they
"hope this series will serve the community of faith, opening the Word of
God to all the people, so that they may be sustained and guided by it" (p.
xii). This hope is wonderfully fulfilled by Limburg’s contribution. </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 2.5pt 0pt 0cm;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Limburg’s mastery of the field of
Psalms study is evident. He is fully conversant with the conclusions of the
form-critical and cult-functional methods that dominated Psalms study for most
of the twentieth century, as well as with the results of the more recent
rhetorical approach to the Psalms and the even more recent scholarly attention
given to the shape and shaping of the Psalter as a book. </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Even more impressive is Limburg's ability to draw upon the results of
Psalms scholarship to communicate theological insights. Limburg appeals to an
array of biblical scholars, but he also cites a weal</span><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">th of other sources as he illus</span><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">trates the claims of the Psalms on the life of the church and on the
lives of believers (from Soren Kierkegaard to Ray Bradbury, and from Felix
Mendelssohn to Willie Nelson). Limburg frequently illustrates the theological
claims of the Psalms by citing rabbinical tales; he regularly relates psalms to
the hymnic tradition of the Church and often discusses their use in the
Lectionary and the Christian calendar; and he consistently puts the psalms in
conversation with other biblical material from both Old and New Testaments. </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 1.65pt 0pt 0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Limburg's style throughout the volume is lively, clear, and accessible.
For example, he makes the simple but brilliant suggestion that readers
understand the Hebrew word </span><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "XQENW E+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">hesed </span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "KWNWD A+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">as "amazing grace" (pp. 348,463). Also,
Limburg makes abundantly clear the ecological significance and implications of
the Psalms (and not just when commenting on so-called creation psalms like Pss
8 and 104). All in all, it would be hard to imagine a commentary that more
successfully fulfills the editors* intention to communicate the meaning and
relevance of the Psalms to a lay audience. </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "KWNWD A+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "KWNWD A+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">As one who has devoted much of his career to
commenting upon the Psalms and proclaiming their relevance for church and
world, I trust that Limburg's work will be widely used not only by lay people
in the church but also by students, pastors, and teachers in a variety of
settings. </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "KWNWD A+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "HHKWI O+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">J. CLINTON MCCANN, JR.</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "KWNWD A+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">EDEN
THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "KWNWD A+ Times"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">WEBSTER
GROVES, MISSOURI</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Zie ook:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<a href="http://www.bookreviews.org/pdf/1312_3006.pdf"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://www.bookreviews.org/pdf/1312_3006.pdf</span></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: NL;"><a href="http://commentariesandreviews.blogspot.nl/2012/01/startbibliotheek-ot.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><strong><span style="font-size: large;">Back: </span></strong><span style="font-size: large;"><strong>Starting Library OT</strong></span></span></span></a></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: NL;"><a href="http://whichcommentary.blogspot.com/2012/01/welk-bijbelcommentaar-en-waarom.html"><strong><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">BACK: NAAR OVERZICHT</span></strong></a></span></div>
E. van Wijkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02896627319013041491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-714947661312717398.post-10433161260088727552013-02-21T05:30:00.000-08:002013-02-21T05:31:52.528-08:00Review of: Gina Hens-Piazza, 1-2 Kings (AOTC), Abingdon Press, 2006; in: Interpretation<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Gina Hens-Piazza, <i>1-2 Kings</i>
(AOTC), Abingdon Press, 2006</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Review in: <i>Interpretation</i>
2007 61: 333 <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Review door: Richard
D. Nelson<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Gevonden op: </span></span></span><a href="http://int.sagepub.com/content/61/3/333.1.full.pdf+html"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://int.sagepub.com/content/61/3/333.1.full.pdf+html</span></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 1.05pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">1-2
Kings </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<i><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">by Gina Hens-Piazza </span></i><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Abingdon OT
Commentaries, Abingdon, Nashville, 2006. 407 pp. $36 00. ISBN 978-0-687-49021-9<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0.35pt 0pt 0.1pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">THIS
IS AN EXCELLENT non-technical road map to Kings, written largely from a
literary or narrative perspective. The commentary is completely accessible to
the non-specialist. Yet beneath the surface, it evidences Gina Hens-Piazza's
extensive and intensive acquaintance with scholarly literature on Kings and the
classic problems of the book. Each unit of text (usually one chapter) receives
commentary under three headings: Literary Analysis, Exegetical Analysis, and
Theological and Ethical Analysis. The Exegetical Analysis sections deal with
paragraph-sized subdivisions of the chapter. Narrowly historical questions are
disregarded in favor of questions of story and structure. Pastors and teachers
will find this a valuable resource. The connections between commentary and
application are almost always natural, logical, and unforced. The author's
reflections on theological and ethical issues speak to contemporary concerns
and do not always take the most obvious or predictably conventional route. The
theological arena is confined to the thought-world of the OT and the
contemporary dilemmas of human existence, without excursions into NT or
specifically Christian concerns. The writing style is straightforward and
undemanding, almost novelistic at points. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 18.7pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">RICHARD D. NELSON</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">PERKINS SCHOOL OF THEOLOGY</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">DALLAS, TEXAS</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Zie ook:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<a href="http://www.bookreviews.org/pdf/5613_6621.pdf"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://www.bookreviews.org/pdf/5613_6621.pdf</span></span></a><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">en:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<a href="http://www.bookreviews.org/pdf/5613_5929.pdf"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://www.bookreviews.org/pdf/5613_5929.pdf</span></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: NL;"><a href="http://commentariesandreviews.blogspot.nl/2012/01/startbibliotheek-ot.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><strong><span style="font-size: large;">Back: </span></strong><span style="font-size: large;"><strong>Starting Library OT</strong></span></span></span></a></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: NL;"><a href="http://whichcommentary.blogspot.com/2012/01/welk-bijbelcommentaar-en-waarom.html"><strong><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">BACK: NAAR OVERZICHT</span></strong></a></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span>E. van Wijkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02896627319013041491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-714947661312717398.post-76769163540646118052013-02-21T05:28:00.001-08:002013-02-21T05:28:47.563-08:00Review of: Terence Fretheim, Jeremiah (SHBC), Smyth & Helwys, 2002; in: Interpretation<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Terence Fretheim, <i>Jeremiah</i>
(SHBC), Smyth & Helwys, 2002.</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Review in: <i>Interpretation</i>
2004 58: 188 <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Review door: Pamela
J. Scalise<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Gevonden op: </span></span></span><a href="http://int.sagepub.com/content/58/2/188.full.pdf+html"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://int.sagepub.com/content/58/2/188.full.pdf+html</span></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Jeremiah </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<i><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">by Terence Fretheim </span></i><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Smyth & Helwys Bible Commentary. Smyth & Helwys,
Macon, 2002. </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">704 </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">pp. $65.00 (cloth). ISBN 1-57312-072-3. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">FRETHEIM'S VOLUME IS concerned with readers. One can scarcely
turn a page in the first half of the commentary without finding a reference to
the initial readers of the book of Jeremiah. That first audience looked back on
the Babylonian conquest, lived during the Exile, but had not been liberated by
Cyrus. Fretheim consistently engages what the book communicates to its reading
audience as opposed to what Jeremiah the prophet said to his hearers on various
occasions. Indeed, he judges speculative efforts to identify and date
Jeremiah's authentic words to be unfaithful to the text. Although the
introduction addresses setting, text, and the history of composition, the
commentary itself is an extended theological exposition of the book of
Jeremiah. Fretheim's treatment reveals the compelling message within the
complex disorder of the biblical book.</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">The
book of Jeremiah is a book about God. Its "intended effect is to bring to
shamed and hurting exiles a clear word about the kind of God who is present and
active on their behalf" (p. 5). Building on his earlier works, <i>The Suffering
God </i>and <i>Exodus, </i>Fretheim bases the activity and character of God on
an absolute will to love. The divine word, however, is resistible; the people's
sin, rather than divine judgment, introduces disaster into their lives. The
disaster is inherent in the sin, whether that of Israel, Babylon, or other
nations. Fretheim frequently uses the colloquial expression, "What goes
around comes around" (e.g., p. 57). God mediates or facilitates the
consequences of human wickedness but does not punish. Wrath is a response, not
a divine attribute. This non-forensic depiction of judgment allows God in
Jeremiah to mourn sincerely over the suffering that the people have brought
upon themselves. Although Fretheim does not address the charge directly, his
understanding of God in Jeremiah does not fit the pattern of the abuser who
alternately inflicts violence and repents of violence. Hope for the future
derives from God's tears and from the promises to the ancestors whom God cannot
abandon. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">The series' format includes an application
section for each unit of text. These "connections" are meant to
suggest issues, themes, methods, and resources for teaching and preaching.
Fretheim typically uses this section to summarize and supplement his
theological exposition. Christian doctrinal terms seldom appear, and he
discusses the New Testament use of Jeremiah in only two of the commentary's
forty-nine text units. He also uses "connections" to warn against
uncritical application. Hermeneutical and theological reflection are <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">required before employing Jeremiah's language
in contemporary settings. </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Fretheim also addresses his readers' interest in
application in the "sidebars," brief articles boxed off from the main
text and indexed separately. Eleven of the book's sixteen references to Jesus
occur in the sidebars. (One of them is a misprint, p. 401.) Several of these
articles answer readers' questions that are likely to arise from the
commentary. The sidebars address lexical issues, provide cultural information,
and quote other scholars on matters pertaining to the theological exposition.
They also include seven poems by Daniel Berrigan and a selection of western
paintings and drawings inspired by Jeremiah. Of the twenty-one photos and two
drawings of ancient artifacts, only a handful are from the time and place of
the book's setting. For instance, a drawing of phallic statuary from the Greek
island of Delos illustrates "sexual imagery" in Jeremiah, and a photo
of a reconstructed Greek amphora from 400 CE. illustrates "the breaking of
the pot" in Jeremiah 19. Contemporary images include an Amish horse cart,
which accompanies the sidebar on the Rechabites. </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">This use of illustrations mirrors
the collage-like structure and impressionistic portrayal that characterize the
book of Jeremiah according to Fretheim's apt description. The sidebars make a
generally pleasing impression but lack clarity. Their text is printed in brown
ink and difficult to read; some of the black and white photographs and
reproductions of artwork are too murky to understand. (On the computer screen
the pictures are brighter, but the brown print becomes almost illegible.)
Subsequent references to the sidebars in the commentary text do not give the
page numbers where they first appear, necessitating a "side trip" to
the index. </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">The accompanying compact disc duplicates the
commentary page-by-page. Users have permission to download text and images to
use for teaching and preaching. The cumbersome search feature is incomplete.
Headings, titles in the bibliography, and initial pages of chapters are not
included in the electronic search. Location names on the maps are also not part
of the searchable text. </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">This commentary is not a reference
for readers who want to look up information on textual, lexical, or historical
issues in particular verses. In fact, it is quite possible to read through this
commentary without looking at the biblical text. Nevertheless, Fretheim has
written about the book of Jeremiah as it is found in the Bible in the readers'
hands. An anonymous ancient crafted the traditions of the prophet's ministry
into a book about God for the Judean exiles. Terence Fretheim interprets that
book theologically for twenty-first century Christians.</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Pamela
J. Scalise</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">FULLER
THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY - NORTHWEST</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">SEATTLE,
WASHINGTON</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />E. van Wijkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02896627319013041491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-714947661312717398.post-21774804077643195122013-02-21T05:26:00.000-08:002013-02-21T05:26:32.875-08:00Review of: E.W. Dobbs-Allsopp, Lamentations (Interpretation), Westminster John Knox, 2002; in: Interpretation<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">E.W. Dobbs-Allsopp, </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Lamentations</span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> (Interpretation), Westminster </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">John Knox, 2002<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">Review in: <i>Interpretation</i>
2003 57: 80 <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Review door:
Kathleen M. O'connor<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Gevonden op: </span></span></span><a href="http://int.sagepub.com/content/57/1/80.1.full.pdf+html"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">http://int.sagepub.com/content/57/1/80.1.full.pdf+html</span></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Lamentations
</span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<i><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">by E.W. Dobbs-Allsopp </span></i><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Interpretation: A Bible
Commentary for Teaching and Preaching. John Knox, Louisville, 2002.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">159 pp. $21.95 (cloth).
ISBN 0-8042-3141-9. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">LYRIC POETRY DIFFERS
FROM other poetic forms because it lacks plotline, characters, and other
structuring devices common to narratives. To provide meaning, lyrics rely upon
evocative powers of language and a plethora of poetic devices. In an elegant
introduction, Dobbs-Allsopp identifies linguistic and stylistic features of
Lamentations' lyrics. Five chapters, corresponding to the five poems of
Lamentations, sustain that attention and distinguish this commentary. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Dobbs-Allsopp's
conversation partners include not only biblical scholars but also contemporary
poets and literary critics, giving rare breadth and freshness to his
interpretation. He is more certain than some scholars of the book's</span><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> origins during the Babylonian period, but he does recognize
the dearth of historical evidence within the text itself. More importantly, his
attention to poetry reveals how the biblical book has been able to embrace
multiple calamities throughout history. Although Lamentations expresses little
hope for the future, Dobbs-Allsopp finds healing benefits even in God's hurtful
silence. Divine silence in the face of catastrophe leaves space for human
sorrow, respects truth, and makes faith its own touchstone. And for Christians,
God's silence also invokes the cross. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">One of the more vexing matters of interpretation is the
question of the relationships of the five poems to one another. Despite formal
features like acrostic and alphabetic structures that separate the poems,
Dobbs-Allsopp rightly insists upon literary coherence across the book.
Excursuses on personified Zion, Egyptian captivity, conventional language, the
choral lyric, and the silence of God bring other literary and theological
questions to bear upon the commentary. This beautifully written book
contributes much to the work of scholars, but it also shows contemporary
readers how Lamentations can help us grieve and become more compassionate in
the aftermath of unspeakable suffering.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">KATHLEEN M. O'CONNOR</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">COLUMBIA THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">DECATUR, GEORGIA</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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</span><br />E. van Wijkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02896627319013041491noreply@blogger.com0