BIBLICAL STUDIES

Enoch and the Messiah Son of Man: Revisiting the Book of Parables,
G. Boccaccini (ed.), Eerdmans, 2007 (ISBN 978-0-8028-0377-1), xv + 539
pp., pb $50

The history of the modern reception of the Similitudes or Parables of

Enoch, which comprise the second main section of the surviving text
of 1 Enoch (Chapters 37–71), presents a neat illustration of the Hege-
lian paradigm. The thesis, propounded in the late nineteenth and
early twentieth century, held that the Parables were a pre-Christian
work testifying to the existence of the title and concept of the escha-
tological heavenly Son of Man. They could, therefore, be used to
throw light on Jesus’ use of the term in the Gospels. With the growth
of anti-Semitism in Europe, explanations of the New Testament in
terms of its Jewish background lost favor, and thus the antithesis
developed, holding that Parables was a later, probably Christian work,
itself to be understood in the light of the New Testament. This view
was greatly strengthened as it became clear that, unlike the other sec-
tions of 1 Enoch, no trace of Parables was to be found at Qumran It
reached its apogee with Milik’s judgment in the late 1970s that the
text is a Christian composition of the late third century. Such an
extreme conclusion could only provoke reaction. For the last three
decades, therefore, we have been in a period of synthesis, a synthesis
represented and summarized by this collection of essays proceeding
from the Third Enoch Seminar held at Camaldoli in Tuscany in June
2005. Gabriele Boccaccini’s Introduction makes much of the ‘parallel’
with the meeting in the same venue of the Florentine Platonic
Academy in 1468 led by the distinguished Renaissance philosopher
and humanist, Marsilio Ficino. Both sessions, we are informed, were
restricted to scholars of eminence at the cutting edge of their work. It
remains to be seen whether such claims for the Enoch Seminar can be
justified by an analysis of their work.
A compilation of this kind brings its problems for the reviewer. In
his Conclusion, Paolo Sacchi observes that ‘it would be impossible
to address each of these [essays] individually’, and this is certainly

Reviews in Religion and Theology, 15:3 (2008)

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UK and 350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148, USA.
Biblical Studies 291

a difficulty when we are faced with thirty-two contributions together

with an Introduction and a Conclusion, that is, twenty-nine sections
more than Parables itself! However, we can be relieved that, unlike
Parables, this book is not a translation of a translation though the
strange English in some of the essays (’the history is a symbolic
process’, ‘Parables are back – with revenge’) prompts one to ask why
so many non-native speakers were expected to rely on their own
language skills rather than having a proper translation made as is
done, for example, for the Deutero-Canonical and Cognate Literature
Yearbook published by de Gruyter. (Sabino Chialà’s essay is a clear
and coherent exception.) The contributions are divided into six
sections: (1) The Structure of the Text; (2) The Parables within the
Enoch Tradition; (3) The Son of Man; (4) The Parables within Second
Temple Literature; (5) The Social Setting; and (6) The Dating. Some
of the essays are extensive (Walck thirty-nine pages, Kavanvig
thirty-seven, Orlov twenty-seven, Boccaccini twenty-seven, Chialà
twenty-six, Nicklelsburg twenty-five), some brief (Stuckenbruck
seven, Olson seven, Adler six, Boyarin six, Eshel five, Yarbro-Collins
five). Some are general surveys (Chialà, Walck); others very specific
(Ben-Dov, Bautch). Most are independent contributions but a few are
responses to one or more of these. Not surprisingly, there is a certain
amount of overlap both within and among the different sections, and
most of the contributors have something to say about the dating
problem even if it is not their prime concern. In view of this, together
with the language problem, a greater and more careful degree of
control by the editor would have been helpful. This could also
have had an effect on the length and repetitiousness of some of the
essays, several of which are rambling to the point of incoherence.
Perhaps some of the eminences were a little too grises! The absence
of an index of authors and sources is also a serious drawback to
this book. The editor would have been better employed seeing to
these rather than drawing his fanciful parallels with the Florentine
Academy.
Certain general conclusions emerge reflecting the new synthesis
in Parables studies. There is massive agreement that Parables is based
on, related to and probably an extension of Watchers (1 En. 1–36),
though Stuckenbruck rightly counsels against neglecting other sec-
tions of 1 Enoch when investigating such relationships (p. 69).
However, the link with Watchers makes the differences between the
two texts which some scholars identify all the more interesting. On
the other hand, those authors who address the matter, are convinced
that Parables draws its astronomic information from a source
similar to but not identical with Heavenly Luminaries (1 En. 72–82).
There is also a consensus that the influence of Parables is clearly
detectable in the New Testament, but only in Matthew (‘throne of his
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292 Biblical Studies

glory’, Mt. 19.28, 25.31). Most interesting for both New Testament
scholars and specialists in the literature and thought of Second
Temple Judaism is the heavy weight of opinion in favor of a date of
composition around the turn of the era, thus making possible the
work’s influence not only on the New Testament but on Jesus himself,
especially if Charlesworth’s suggestion of Galilean provenance is
adopted (p. 465).
The agreements are impressive. In some areas, however, there is
continued debate. The status of 1 Enoch 70.3–4 and 71 and the linked
question of the identification of Enoch with the Son of Man remains
unresolved. Moreover, not all are agreed that the various eschatological
titles in the book should all be applied to one figure. Koch, for example,
proposes that the Messiah could be a separate figure as in 4 Ezra and 2
Baruch (p. 236). There is not so much disagreement as variation in the
explanations for the apparent absence of this text at Qumran. Piovanel-
li’s suggestion that it was not sectarian enough for the Scrollers seems
highly likely (p. 375), while Charlesworth’s observation that mixed
solar/lunar calendars were known at Qumran lays to rest an older
hypothesis.
It is the articles that show an awareness of the difficulties surround-
ing study of the Parables which make the most valuable contribution
to this collection. Stuckenbruck and Piovanelli both warn of the prob-
lems caused by the fact that we do not have the original text of the
work. Stuckenbruck makes the interesting suggestion that it could
have been composed in Greek, while Piovanelli, like Kvanvig, alerts
us to the danger of translating three different Ethiopic expressions,
which may not be translation variants, with the single ‘Son of Man’
(p. 368). Such dangers are compounded by the obvious instability of
the textual transmission (p. 368), and Collins exploits both to make a
good case for the separation of Enoch and the heavenly Son of Man
(pp. 221–4).
This book bears all the disadvantages associated with a straight con-
gress record. It would be of little use or appeal to the non-specialist,
possibly even the non-eminent specialist, for whom a much briefer and
more coherent summary of present trends in the field would have
sufficed. However, there is much material here for the contributors to
develop either individually or collaboratively, and we look forward to
their further forays in the field.

Michael Tait
Mirfield, UK

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© 2008 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2008 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Biblical Studies 293

Mark: A Commentary, M. Eugene Boring, Westminster John Knox

Press, 2006 (ISBN 13-978-0-664-22107-2/10-0-664-22107-6, )xxxvii + 482
pp., hb $49.95

This rich and substantial volume, written by one of the most competent
exegetes, is a valuable addition to the New Testament Library series.
While the series are not specifically oriented to New Testament practi-
tioners in the academic community, they nonetheless provide fresh and
profound insights into various aspects of the New Testament books that
both specialist and nonspecialist will find stimulating. At the outset,
Boring disavows any attempt ‘for novelty, to go where no commentator
has gone before’ (p. xi). Yet, this work is a tour-de-force that is readable,
insightful, and scholarly.
The commentary proper is preceded by a twenty-five-page introduc-
tion in which Boring presents succinct notes on the Markan story, its
structure, genre, sources, date, provenance, author, purpose, text and
transmission, language, translation, and interpretation. Since Boring’s
intention is to ‘present the information readers of Mark need in order to
engage the text, without merely assembling a collection of miscella-
neous comments’ (p. xi), an appreciation of his assumptions is critical to
a better understanding of this volume.
Boring correctly argues that any attempt to understand Mark must
reckon with three fundamental approaches, since ‘the Gospel of Mark is
located at the intersection of historical, literary, and theological trajec-
tories’ (p. 24). First, Mark’s story is about the historical Jesus and his
significance for the Markan community. Boring maintains the tradi-
tional assumption that Mark, like the other three Gospels, was
addressed to a particular Christian community located in the Roman
province of Syria or Galilee in the first century (pp. 15–20), despite
recent arguments to the contrary by Richard Bauckham (1998). Boring
agrees with the majority of scholars in dating Mark ca. 65–75 CE, a
difficult time for Mark’s community. During this chaotic time, Roman
Christians had been made scapegoats by Nero for the disastrous fire
that burned much of the inner city of Rome in 64 CE; many of the
Christian leaders, including Peter and Paul, had been martyred in the
purge; and the catastrophic Roman–Jewish War of 66–70 CE had just
been waged in which Jerusalem and Temple had been razed to the
ground or about to be destroyed. Mark writes a didactic message to
Christians in conflict to build their faith, encourage them in their dis-
cipleship to Jesus and to help them better understand the meaning of
the Christ event in a confused situation. Boring opines, ‘Mark is histori-
cal in a double sense: it deals with a particular historical figure (30 CE
historical Jesus) and addresses a particular historical situation (ca. 70
CE Markan context). Historical methods are necessary to get within
hearing distance of Mark’s narrative’ (p. 24).
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294 Biblical Studies

Second, Boring sees Mark as a consummate storyteller. The narrative

curtain opens to a host of characters and an intricate plot. The story
begins with a declaration: ‘the beginning of the good news of Jesus
Christ, the Son of God’ (1:1), though Mark does not explain what is
meant by the ‘beginning’ and in what way the story is ‘good news’. The
explication must wait for the story to unfold. The narrative arrange-
ment, which corresponds to the book’s Christological emphases, is
provocatively suffused with Mark’s rhetorical skills. The narrator
(behind whom stands an unidentified author) identifies Jesus as the
Christ at the outset of the story and recounts many of Jesus’ miracles.
Yet, no human characters, except demons, recognize Jesus’ identity
until Peter’s confession halfway through narrative (8:27–9). In the
second half of the story, Jesus identifies himself as the Son of Man and
predicts his passion, death, resurrection, and return in glory at the
eschaton (8:30–16:8). The narrative seems to lend itself to this bipartite
structure. Yet, Mark introduces a transitional unit representing the
‘way’ of Jesus from Galilee to Jerusalem, which is bracketed with two
symbolic stories of healing blind persons (8:22–10:52), as a ‘bridge’ that
overlaps and connects 1:1–8:21 and 11:1–16:8. Boring presents the fol-
lowing major structural elements as constituting the main outline of the
Markan story, which he pursues in the commentary:

1:1–15 Title and Prologue: Judea and Galilee

PART 1 GALILEE 1:16–8:21
1:16–3:35 Authority, Rejection, and the New Community
4:1–34 Central Discourse: Parables and the Mystery of the
Kingdom of God
4:35–8:21 Crossing Borders
‘THE WAY’ GALILEE TO JERUSALEM 8:22–10:52
PART 2 JERUSALEM 11:1–15:47
11:1–13:4 Public Demonstration and Conflict
13:5–37 Central Discourse: Historical Troubles and the Coming
Son of Man
14:1–15:47 Trial and Death
16:1–8 Epilogue: Resurrection and Mission: Back to Galilee

Boring further argues that despite the points of contact between

Mark and Hellenistic bioi, the Gospel is not a biography in the Helle-
nistic or modern sense. Drawing on the literary categories known to
him, the author composes a narrative ‘so distinctive from existing
genres as to be considered a quantum leap, a mutation rather then
merely a Christian example of an existing genre or an evolution from
preceding models’ (p. 7). The Gospel of Mark is distinctively Christo-
logical, written by an author who did not know the historical Jesus nor
relied on eyewitness accounts. As the first Gospel to be written), Mark
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Biblical Studies 295

was unaware of the other canonical (and extracanonical) Gospels.

Rather, Mark was composed ‘on the basis of living Christian tradition
from and about Jesus that circulated in his church as the substance of
preaching and teaching, including pre-Markan collections of material’
(p. 13). Literary approaches undoubtedly assist in reading the text
and offer new perspectives on the Markan story. However, they ‘are
not alternatives to historical considerations, but are their necessary
complement’ (p. 24).
Finally, Mark’s narrative is primarily theological and Boring’s single
goal in this commentary ‘is to use the full spectrum of methods to
facilitate a hearing of this theological message in all its strangeness and
terror’ (p. 25).
This commentary is commendable in several respects. It includes a
fresh and lucid translation with clarifying notes, a focus on primary
sources, a sophisticated interaction with secondary literature, and
erudite excursuses. In my judgment, Boring has succeeded in deftly
blending historical, literary, and theological analysis in a work that
should appeal to a large audience.

Daniel Dapaah
The John Leland Center for Theological Studies

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Engaging Biblical Authority: Perspectives on the Bible as Scripture,

William P. Brown (ed.), Westminster John Knox Press, 2007 (ISBN
978-0-664-23057-9), xvi + 158 pp., pb $19.95

This collection of sixteen essays, plus introduction, offers an interesting

range of perspectives on the nature of scripture and its use from schol-
ars, primarily Christian but also Jewish, who are committed to living
with scripture as well as working with it. The list of contributors is
distinguished: Marc Zvi Brettler, Michael Joseph Brown, Katie Cannon,
Carlos Cardoza-Orlandi, Ellen Davis, Terence Fretheim, Robert Jenson,
Luke Timothy Johnson, Serene Jones, Sarah Heamer Lancaster, Jacque-
line Lapsley, Frank Matera, S. Dean McBride Jr, Peter Ochs, Allen
Verhey, Seung Ai Yang.
The nature and purpose of the book is usefully formulated by the
editor:

This volume is designed to mitigate the ‘shock’ and help readers articulate
an understanding of biblical authority in relation to the critical study of
Scripture. Featured are contributions from those who have not only
© 2008 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2008 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
296 Biblical Studies

survived the passage of theological education but gained much from it

(though not without some struggle), and now teach in a theological
context. Moreover, they continue to find Scripture foundational to their
lives, finding it inconceivable to think otherwise. In this volume, many
share how their view of biblical authority has changed over the years while
teaching (and learning) within their theological disciplines (e.g., Bible,
theology, church history, philosophy, missions). On one level, each essay is
a case study: behind each contribution stands someone firmly rooted in her
or his faith community . . . One can simply read these essays as personal
reflections. But they are more than that; they are offerings that articulate
something of the Bible’s efficacy and depth for persons of faith. (p. x)

Those who hold an inerrantist understanding of scripture are not repre-

sented. Perhaps one might put it bluntly and say that one purpose of the
book is to help theological students from ‘conservative’ backgrounds to
see that they can typically trust their biblical and theological teachers in
‘nonconservative’ contexts as people of faith who take scripture seri-
ously. This is, of course, a recurrent live issue in theological education.
All the essays are short and readable. A good number of them offer
autobiographical reflection on the role of scripture in the writer’s
upbringing, and most have an existentially engaged dimension to them.
Some offer sophisticated theological reflection, while Brettler frankly
confesses ‘I cannot begin to imagine how God is involved in the rev-
elation of scripture’ (p. 9).
There is no dialogue between the essays, and no attempt to reflect
upon what they share and where they differ. The editor’s introduction
does not overview the essays, but rather offers a succinct account of
biblical authority in functional and dialogical terms – though, interest-
ingly, with no reference to the notion of a ‘rule of faith’ and recent
proposals for its reintroduction into debate.
In all, it is a stimulating collection, though it is not self-evident to me
how best to use it in teaching.

Walter Moberly
Durham University

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Recovering Paul’s Mother Tongue: Language and Theology in

Galatians, Susan Eastman, Eerdmans, 2007 (ISBN 978-0-8028-3165-1),
xiv + 206 pp., pb $25.00

Most scholarly approaches to Paul’s letters (including Galatians) with

an interest in ‘theology’ concentrate on the content of the letter. Susan
© 2008 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2008 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
Biblical Studies 297

Eastman, assistant professor of the practice of Bible and Christian for-

mation at Duke Divinity School, claims that Galatians can best be
interpreted and understood when content and style are mutually con-
sidered. Focusing on Galatians 4:12–5:1, a section that plays a crucial
role in the argument of the letter, Eastman gives particular attention to
the rich familial (and especially maternal) metaphors, the ‘relational
matrix’ that bonds Paul, Christ, and his converts to one another, and the
role of suffering for those who identify with the Gospel of Christ. The
cluster of images and arguments that appear in this epistolary section,
she argues, provide a major contribution to Paul’s depiction of how the
‘new creative power of God’ (p. 14) not only initiated the faith of the
Galatian believers, but has ‘staying power’ – the ability to bring them to
maturity and completion.
Paradigmatic for Eastman is a categorization of discourse that she
borrows from American poet and novelist Ursula Le Guin who classi-
fies types of discourse into ‘father tongue’, ‘mother tongue’, and ‘native
tongue’. ‘Father tongue’, according to Le Guin, is the language of ‘domi-
nant power’, feeling aloof and authoritarian. ‘Mother tongue’ is rela-
tional and intimate, and unites the conversation partners through
vulnerability and self-disclosure (see pp. 7–8). ‘Native tongue’ is found
where the private nature of ‘mother tongue’ is brought into the public
arena. Hence, for Eastman, ‘one might recognize in Paul’s intensely
emotional, experiential, and indeed gendered appeal the apostle’s
“native tongue” ’ (p. 9). What makes this especially unique, in East-
man’s understanding, is the blending of very personal and intimate
speech with the cosmic framework within which Paul’s understanding
of the Gospel operates – and as one progresses through the book, her
dependence on Lou Martyn’s work is quite obvious.
After a useful preliminary chapter that introduces the themes of the
book and the basic methodology (Chapter 1), she turns to Galatians
4:12–20 where attention is drawn to the ‘relational matrix’ and where
Paul helps his readers to reinterpret their story ‘in Christ’ (Chapter 2).
A third chapter compares Paul to the biblical prophets, noting the way
the latter embodied their message as well as proclaimed it. Additionally,
Eastman shows how the prophets lived in an undefined intermediate
location where they suffered the judgment of their people and spoke on
God’s behalf and felt his anguish over his wayward children. Next, she
goes into detail about the image of the ‘labor pains’ that Paul experi-
ences as the metaphorical mother of his converts in hopes of Christ
being formed in them. In the two subsequent chapters, she deals with
two of Paul’s arguments based on antinomies – the extended typology
of Hagar and the free woman (Chapter 5) and the dichotomy of
flesh and spirit (Chapter 6). A final chapter is dedicated to summarizing
her findings and reflecting on contemporary implications of her
research.
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298 Biblical Studies

There is much to commend Eastman’s thorough and thought-

provoking research. In the first place, her writing style is clear and often
poetic. Second, her exegetical work is meticulous and her analysis of
Galatians 4:12–5:1 rivals some of the best commentaries in terms of
insight into Paul’s rhetoric as well as contextual and intertextual influ-
ences. One of the most provocative and perceptive chapters is her
engagement with Paul’s relationship to the prophets in terms of both
‘calling’ and manner of discourse.
A couple of concerns, though, are worthy of note. Given how central
le Guin’s system of ‘mother tongue’ is for Eastman, one may question if
such a modern classification can be so casually overlaid onto Paul’s
letter to the Galatians. She could have borne out exactly how Paul was
intimate, vulnerable, and personal over and against his other letters.
Second, it is often observed that the word ‘apocalyptic’ is a popular
term, but quite slippery and used in a variety of ways by different
scholars. Though Martyn’s (and Gaventa’s) influence is clear, Eastman
would have benefited from defining her use of ‘apocalyptic’ more con-
cretely. Scholars have resigned to avoiding its use completely because of
its elusive meaning in scholarship. Finally, given the popularity of
analyzing various metaphors used by Paul, it was a bit surprising to find
that Eastman did not seriously integrate insights from literary special-
ists working in the field of conceptual metaphor theory (see the brief
discussion on pp. 22–3).
The above concerns, though, should not prevent any student of Gala-
tians from engaging in Eastman’s penetrating work. Anyone interested
in Paul’s manner of discourse, his gospel of suffering and power, and
his appeal to his readers regarding how to progress toward maturity
and faithfulness, will find that Eastman’s work repays careful reading.

Nijay K. Gupta
Durham University

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Our Mother Saint Paul, Beverly Roberts Gaventa, Westminster John

Knox Press, 2007 (ISBN 978-0-664-23149-1), xi + 218 pp., pb $24.95

This thoroughly researched and closely argued text offers a completely

new and refreshing look at the Pauline letters. Beverly Gaventa’s project
is to question whether the maternal images in Paul’s writings can be
read as a linked theme which is essential to Paul’s theology, or whether
they should just be considered individual examples. The book is in two
parts thus in the first section of the book Gaventa explores the maternal
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Biblical Studies 299

images presenting her theory with clarity and conviction before, in the
second part of the book, considering how Paul uses maternal imagery in
‘its cosmic and apocalyptic context’.
In the Introduction to Part One, Gaventa draws our attention to the
four reasons which lead her to the notion that these images are more
than just disparate examples. First, she points to the complexity of all of
the maternal metaphors, arguing that these are ‘metaphors squared’
requiring a ‘double switch’ to reveal the intention (p. 4); among the
examples she sites is that in 1 Thessalonians 2:7 where first Paul uses a
family metaphor to describe his relationship with community then
immediately transform this through his metaphor of the nurse-mother.
Her second consideration examines the relationship between Paul’s use
of maternal images with his use of paternal ones. This is important
Gaventa argues because we are not naturally drawn to ‘references to the
maternity of the male apostle’ (p. 6) which reveal quite different things
than do the fewer passages which use paternal imagery. It is striking,
Gaventa suggests, that none of the maternal references point to single
events occurring in some past moment but rather to events in extended
time. Her third reason is that in each occurrence of maternal imagery,
Paul is conveying the importance of his apostolic mission and finally
her fourth consideration is that these images are placed within apoca-
lyptic contexts.
In each of the three chapters which follow, Gaventa takes one of the
maternal metaphors that she has identified and explores it in detail
drawing out its significance in relation to Pauline theology – a theology
that should be understood as apocalyptic. Drawing on an exceptionally
wide range of material both historical and contemporary, and literary
theory, Gaventa lays out her argument in such a way that the reader is
able to view Paul in a different light.
The first of the metaphors that Gaventa examines is that of the infant
and nurse in 1 Thessalonians 2:7. After consideration of the problems of
translation and structure of the text, Gaventa concludes that Paul
applies the metaphor of infant to himself as well as his coworkers (p. 25)
before using the nurse motive to present himself as an Apostle of
Christ. The apostle is childlike as well as a responsible adult caring for
her charges (p. 27). The mixing of these metaphors, Gaventa argues is
significant in that they have not only a theological function but also
social and paraenetic functions which are essential for the realization of
the purpose of community.
The second maternal metaphor that Gaventa considers is the birthing
imagery that Paul uses in Galatians 4:19. She draws out the complicated
picture that Paul’s use of language presents of the Galatians ‘inside his
“womb” ’ with the object of the labor as ‘Christ who is coming to birth
among the Galatians’ (p. 29). The first half of the metaphor Gaventa
presents as an example of apocalyptic expectation suggesting that
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300 Biblical Studies

Paul’s anguish reflects that of the ‘whole of created order’ as it awaits

‘the fulfilment of God’s action in Jesus Christ’ (p. 34). The second half of
the verse points not to believers being born but to Christ (p. 37). This
enables Gaventa to conclude that Paul is concerned with all creation and
that the verse has wider theological claims than just a statement of
friendship between himself and the Galatians.
The feeding metaphor in Chapter 3 considers Paul’s message to the
Corinthian’s that he gives milk not solid food (1 Cor. 3: 1–3a). The
image of the nursing mother is an indication, Gaventa suggests, of
Paul’s ‘understanding of the apostolic task’ (p. 41). To draw out this
metaphor she explores other examples of the use of milk and solid food
in other writers particularly Philo, Epictetus and the Christian authors
of the letter to the Hebrews and 1 Peter. She concludes that Paul does
something with the metaphor beyond that revealed by these writers –
he ‘presents himself as the mother of the Corinthians’ (p. 45). It is
important, however, Gaventa argues that we should consider with
caution how the Corinthians themselves might have received this
image of the male nursing mother. To this end, she teases out possibili-
ties without drawing any firm conclusions.
The final example Gaventa presents her readers with is that of the
creation metaphor in Romans 8:22. The metaphor here, Gaventa argues,
shifts away from Paul to creation itself (p. 52). She begins her examina-
tion with a critique of the varied arguments about the meaning of
creation in this context. Her extremely detailed analysis provides the
reader with a background in which to contextualize Gaventa’s own
argument that despite the differences in the use of metaphor and
imagery in this passage there are significant connections to the maternal
‘thread’ that reveals Paul’s theology as apocalyptic.
Gaventa concludes Part One with a reflection on Pauline theology and
its significance in the lives of women. She leads us into Part Two with
the thought that even if Paul did not give the Galatian women who
heard his letter ‘a passing thought’ (p. 74), we can consider how the
letter articulates ‘God’s new creation, a creation that liberates both
women and men from their worlds of achievement and identity. It is
God’s new creation, not one ushered in by human effort’ (p. 74). Part
Two then places Paul’s maternal image in as Gaventa describes it, ‘its
cosmic and apocalyptic context’. This Gaventa does in six chapters
considering in detail how this emerges from Paul’s letters to the Gala-
tians and to the Romans. Thus, she explores how through the ‘subver-
sive’ images of Paul as breast-feeding mother and nurse he ‘acts out the
epistemology of the “new creation” ’ (p. 80).
As we would expect from Beverly Gaventa, this text is not only
detailed, carefully researched, and academic, it also provides us with
food for thought. Gaventa draws on her wide and varied research to
present an exegesis which opens up new ideas for all of us. Thus, the
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Biblical Studies 301

reader is able to relate this interpretation of Paul’s message on sin and

redemption to their own lives. This text then is not just a welcome
addition to Pauline academic discourse; it offers a useful and interest-
ing text to a much wider audience. Beverley Gaventa herself draws on
the maternal metaphor to tell us that the text has ‘undergone a long
period of gestation’. The reader can only be pleased that at last it
arrived!

Paddy Daniel
Canterbury

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Isaiah 40–55 Volume I, John Goldingay and David Payne, T&T Clark
International, 2006 (ISBN 0-567-04461-0), i + 368 pp., hb £65/$120

Isaiah 40–55 Volume II, John Goldingay and David Payne, T&T Clark
International, 2006 (ISBN 0-567-03072-5), 381 pp., hb £65/$120

As part of an exercise that looks at the textual, philological, and

exegetical material from the book of Isaiah, the authors of these two
books consider not only the contents of each part of Isaiah, in this case
Chapters 40–55, as being individual discrete units, but also their inte-
gral role as part of the rest of this biblical book. In each case, it must
be considered that the sections of Isaiah came into being as part of a
process, each having substantial links and interrelationships with the
other, as well as being contextually related to the rest of scripture and
contemporaneous circumstance. As such, the content of the Isaianic
material was fashioned by its author(s) both historically and rhetori-
cally, using fulfilment, transformation, confirmation, and restoration leit-
motifs that can only be appreciated in a holistic context, whether
synchronically or diachronically. While intrinsic links with the rest of
Isaiah are obvious, the agenda of Chapters 40–55 certainly marks
a new beginning in Isaianic history, which reflects the needs of the
communities and their Prophets in their (continually) changing
circumstances.
As well as considering the dating, and socio-political context, of the
Isaianic material, Goldingay and Payne also look at the arrangement of
the chapters and their poetic formation including: the geographical and
historical location; identity of authorship; occasion for writing; and the
social context of the prospective audience. They highlight the fact that the
message of Isaiah, as represented by a single poet/prophet or a number
of individuals, has a distinctive message about YHWH’s restorative
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302 Biblical Studies

relationship with Israel and the land promised to them, with thematic
genres that remain consistent and persistent throughout.
Some of the themes expressed include: the sense of abandonment
experienced by Jerusalem and a comfort that will bring future hope; the
challenge faced by the Prophet(s) to proclaim a message that will
encourage Israel to stand firm in their faith, else face destruction; and a
conviction that calls for all the people of the world to respond enthu-
siastically to this message of restoration and salvation. The authors of
this book take-up these themes, as well as others, and analyze them
accordingly throughout this extensive and comprehensive critical com-
mentary, which aims to bring together all the major schools of exegeti-
cal, theological, literary, and historical thought and, as such, contribute
significantly to a more efficient rendering of the biblical material.
The opening chapter of this section of Isaiah speaks of the return of
YHWH to his people in a manner that suggests a proleptic mission of
comfort that has called for His people to turn from their evil ways and,
rather, ‘prepare the way of the Lord’, else suffer the consequences.
There is a direct plea to ‘be strong in faith’, avoiding all unnecessary
obstructions, but rather ‘trust in the Lord’ who will give guidance and
support, made manifest not only in His Creation, Covenant and Com-
passion, but also through the words of His Prophet(s), whom He has
chosen to announce His power and purpose.
Goldingay and Payne liken the words of the Prophet, to that of a
Court scene in which the People of YHWH are required to give account
for their behavior and then seek to make amends by reasserting their
faith in the one true God, rejecting the Images and Idols upon which
they had come to rely. Throughout the biblical narrative, there is a
recurrent reassurance that, despite Israel’s failures, God has not forgot-
ten His Servant(s), but will instead continue to bring restoration, rather
than destruction – providing that the people turn to Him. The role of
Cyrus and the fall of Babylonian empire reaffirm these challenges and
call for the people of God to accept the Covenant YHWH has provided
and ensure Israel will not be forgotten, but rather be comforted despite
the suffering endured.
Using extensive bibliographies and a depth of theological knowledge
that demands utmost respect, Goldingay and Payne consider each
chapter and verse from the book of Isaiah Chapters 40–55, and analyze
them according to: linguistic context and content; literary genre and
meaning; parallel use of themes and language found elsewhere in the
biblical material; authorial intent and potential reader response; and
scholarly interpretation both past and present. One cannot help but be
overwhelmed by the colossal nature of these two volumes, which are an
outstanding contribution to biblical scholarship in both form and
content. Goldingay and Payne painstakingly analyze chapter and verse,
comparing the written material with other evidence, such as the
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Biblical Studies 303

Masoretic and the Septuagint texts, as well as linking exegesis with a

hermeneutic of suspicion that is critical and constructive. The outcome
is a very detailed commentary, extensive in structure and comprehen-
sive in content. While it might have its complexities for the reader in
terms of accessibility, the text requiring knowledge of both the biblical
material and the vocabulary used to assess it, this is a very interesting
read and a significant contribution to biblical scholarship.

Benjamin Bury
University of Birmingham

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Gospel-Centered Hermeneutics, Biblical-Theological Foundations

and Principles, Graeme Goldsworthy, Inter-Varsity Press, 2006
(978-1-84474-145-8), 341 pp., pb £16.99

Hermeneutics or the theory of textual interpretation is the scientific

process which aims to elucidate a meaning of a text that will determine
and clarify a more appropriate understanding of its content for the
reader. Prior to the Enlightenment, scriptural interpretation was based
very much on Christian foundations and was therefore largely similar
to a biblical exegesis that aimed to extrapolate meaning from what was
essentially considered to be the word of God. It was not really until the
work of Friedrich Schleiermacher that the boundaries of biblical inter-
pretation changed and hermeneutical theory entered into a new phase
that aimed to overcome the protestant impasse that believed the Bible to
be the inerrant word of God and called rather for an epistemological
concern that took into account the growing historical (and philosophi-
cal) consciousness and, as Martin Heidegger might have later put it, the
existential human search for meaning.
The means by which we understand and interpret is, by its very
nature, fueled by experience and prejudice and can therefore be dis-
turbed by a distorted reading of the text. While some responses that
endeavor to conquer this problem have expressed concern about the
nature of the text itself, thus paying attention to its style, genre, lan-
guage, structure, and philological concerns etc., rather than assuming
its literal bias, others have been influenced by the development of
philosophical inquiries that in many ways aim to demythologize the
biblical material. A true interpretation of the biblical material cannot be
achieved neutrally but must attempt to participate critically in the effec-
tive history of the text that will add to our understanding as well as
determine a more effective appreciation of its contents. Today, an array
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304 Biblical Studies

of scientific and socio-scientific methods are being used to support this

process of studying the biblical material in an attempt to objectify the
social, cultural, and theological world it represents.
Having said this, in this book, Graeme Goldsworthy concentrates on
the implications hermeneutical theory holds for an evangelical reading
of the Gospel, bearing in mind Christian interpretation of the biblical
material has effectively been eroded and usurped by academia at a
secular level. This is not to say that the church has itself participated in
this upsurge of academic interest, but rather that the regressive nature
of modern hermeneutics has to a certain extent, eclipsed the very truth
the Gospel is attempting to convey. In light of this, the nature of evan-
gelical Christianity rests on the keygmatic truth of the Gospel and
therefore any true reading of it, including the goal of Christian herme-
neutics, should be a right understanding of what God is saying to his
people in his Word. As a pretext for a correct Christian hermeneutic,
and to elaborate on this point, Goldsworthy sites the words of the
apostle Paul which call for Christians not to be conformed to the world
but rather transformed by the renewing of the mind and striving for
holiness and sanctification. In other words, he suggests that if Jesus is
our Lord and Saviour, then he is also Lord and Saviour of our herme-
neutics and that therefore any reading of scripture, in contrast to the
above, should take this into account at a personal level.
Goldsworthy aims to bring a fresh perspective to the presupposi-
tions and theological questions of the Gospel and its implications for a
hermeneutic of suspicion. His aim is threefold: to examine the founda-
tion of evangelical belief and its contribution to biblical interpretation;
to identify hermeneutic development in relation to secular and biblical
thought; and to find a means of reconstructing a Gospel-centered
hermeneutic that uses theology as a goal for understanding the essen-
tially pastoral concerns of scripture and its role in relation to the person,
nature and identity of Christ. If scripture bears witness to a metaphysi-
cal, epistemological and ethical reality, then it contains the basis for an
evangelical approach to hermeneutics, albeit theistic, and while enlight-
enment theories are far removed from such biblical presuppositions,
the evangelical hermeneutic needs to be more than reactive to antithe-
istic theory. The challenge for the Christian is, as Goldsworthy sites of
Paul, not to be deceived by the philosophy of human tradition but to
stand in the authority of Christ and using a hermeneutical method that
is Christological. In light of this, two concerns raise themselves: how
can Christian apologists argue a rational case for biblical authority in a
postmodern world (I use the term loosely) and how such Christian
apologists acknowledge previous errors in interpretation and reassess
their principles of hermeneutical praxis without appearing hypocriti-
cal? The task of the evangelical interpreter is to consider the advantages
of hermeneutics that stem from nonbiblical presuppositions and
© 2008 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2008 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
Biblical Studies 305

discover a contemporary expression of Christian theism that is relevant

as well as remaining consistent with the truth of Jesus Christ.
This is an exciting book that uses contemporary methods of research
to make the Gospel relevant and acceptable to the believing community
and, more importantly, promotes the evangelical hermeneutic to a posi-
tion of academic authority. I would certainly recommend this book to
students in their first year at seminary and would suggest that it is
referenced by all those interested in the interpretation of scripture as a
valid antithesis to traditional liberal academia.

Benjamin Bury
University of Birmingham

夹 夹 夹

Messianism within the Scriptural Scrolls of Isaiah, Randall Heskett,

T&T Clark, 2007 (ISBN 978-0-567-02922-5) xvi + 353 pp., hb, $167.55

If this title suggests to you an analysis of Isaiah as found in the Dead Sea
Scrolls, such as 1QIsa and 1QIsb, then forget it. This is only one of the
many confusions with which the work abounds. In due course, the
initial mystery is solved when, from later references to the Book of Isaiah
(pp. 1, 296) and the Scroll (not Scrolls) of Isaiah (p. 34), it becomes clear
that the author is simply dealing with the prophecies of Isaiah consid-
ered a whole in their canonical context rather than examining each
messianic text in its historical setting. At the outset, Heskett claims that
‘no scholar has systematically attempted a thorough examination of
how . . . originally pre-scriptural passages gained a new scriptural form
through the later redaction of the book as a whole’ (p. 1). It is to be
doubted, however, whether he himself fulfils the task he has outlined
since he restricts himself to examining only five key passages in a way
that, as we shall see, can scarcely be deemed systematic.
The introductory chapter rightly tackles the question of the definition
of messianism, something which has been extensively discussed in
recent publications. Heskett’s proposal(s) are scarcely satisfactory: ‘our
definition requires an eschatological event that fulfils the promises of 2
Sam 7 especially after the monarchy has ceased to exist . . . that a person
or persons offer a solution in an extraordinary way to activate and
restore within this world the promises made to David after the monar-
chy has ended’ (p. 3). As if this were not loose enough, he goes on to say:
‘I will need to allow room for some later definitions of messianism
along these lines’, that is, the priestly and prophetic messianism of
Qumran which hardly falls within the promises to David of 2 Sam 7.
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306 Biblical Studies

Having thus attempted to establish what he is looking for, the author

rightly points out that ‘messianic’ texts, as he conceives them, need not
contain the Hebrew root for anointed. This is just as well since there is
only one such use in the whole of the Isaiah’s sixty-two chapters (Isa.
45.1), and, as we soon discover, this text is not messianic. Not messi-
anic, at least, in the context of the whole book, though it may have been
so in the narrower historical context of Second Isaiah. Heskett empha-
sizes here and throughout the book that this is his concern: the messi-
anic nature of oracles in their present setting in the scriptural book of
Isaiah. He makes it clear that he is aligning himself more with the
canonical criticism of Childs than with the canonical hermeneutic of
Sanders, approaches, he considers, that are not always carefully distin-
guished (p. 8).
Chapter 2 deals with the one and only Isaiah text that is terminologi-
cally messianic, Isa. 45:1. Clearly, the ascription of to Cyrus neither
falls within Heskett’s definition nor could it have been intended by the
postexilic redactor of the final form as messianic. It still justifies exege-
sis, however, because if Second Isaiah were the first to use this term as
a way of describing a salvific deliverer beyond the standard limits of a
temporal (Davidic) king, then perhaps this description of the Persian
monarch may have formed a transition that influenced how early
Judaism would establish its own messianic expectation (p. 24). This is a
valuable insight. This chapter is also important because it establishes the
schema that is followed, with greater or less consistency, in the next
three chapters. First of all, the text is examined by looking at those
scholars who have treated it in its historical setting, first those who
reject it as messianic, then those who accept it as such. This is followed
by a ‘rethinking of the evidence’. The pattern is then more or less
repeated for the text considered in its canonical position. This is all very
thorough, but one has to say that it involves endless discussion of the
various status quaestionis where too many scholars are cited too briefly
and out of context. Do we really need to know the views of Joseph
Addison Alexander who published a commentary on Isaiah in 1953?
Moreover, as so often happens in discussions of this kind, it is often
difficult to disentangle the views of the author from those of the schol-
ars whose work he is recounting. When we add to this the inevitable
repetitiousness, and then the inconsistency in applying the schema in
later chapters, we begin to wonder whether or not this was the right
approach.
Similar methodological doubts are raised by the material in Chapter
3, for here three key passages are treated – Isa. 7.14, 9.1–6, and 11.1–9 –
sometimes separately, sometimes together. Further confusion is intro-
duced by the appearance of a new section on premodern interpretation,
both Jewish (the Targum and Ibn Ezra) and Christian (Luther and
Calvin). But why place these after the other more recent commentators,
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Biblical Studies 307

and why is this section labeled ‘II C’ in Chapters 3 and 4, but ‘II B 4’ in
Chapter 5? The possibilities of interpretation with these well-known
texts are without limit. However, Heskett concludes that 11:1–9 was
originally messianic, composed after the destruction of the monarchy;
the other texts were not but take on a messianic hue from their position
in the final redaction.
Chapter 4 on the Suffering Servant in Isa. 52:13–53:12 (not 53:13 [224]
which does not exist) is the best in the book. Within the limits of the
schema, it gives a good review of exegesis on both the Servant Songs
and the Suffering Servant, pointing out the difference between reading
the ‘songs’ as individual oracles, as a putative collection, as part of
Second Isaiah, part of Second and Third Isaiah, and part of the book as
a whole. Heskett concludes that while at the original level of tradition
history the writer had the identity of the Servant in mind, the text is
now marked by a rhetorical ambiguity (173–4) which has allowed both
Christians and Jews to capitalize upon it (220). Two quibbles: how can
Brueggeman’s view that the Servant is the people be classed as ‘messi-
anic’ (160), and why is there an almost word-for-word repetition of the
paragraph on Dodd and Juel from the previous chapter (221, cf. 165)?
Chapter 5 performs a similar operation on the Spirit of Yahweh text
in Isa. 61:1–3. Here too, the identity of the speaker is functionally
ambiguous enough to allow for wide interpretative possibilities. The
passage is not messianic but ‘warrants’ messianic interpretation. The
final chapter is entitled ‘Summary and Conclusions’, but this is an
inaccurate description. It is hardly a summary: over thirty pages con-
stitute ten percent of the entire book! Moreover, the inclusion of a
section on ‘Other Isaianic Passages not Treated’ and ten pages of pure
digression on ‘The Psalms and messianism’ certainly do not fall within
the rubric. Even then, Heskett does not seem to have treated all the
possible passages as promised. Isa. 35.5–6, for example, is mentioned
only in passing on almost the last page. As if reflecting the structural
muddle evident throughout, there is a plethora of misprints beginning
on page xii where the title is misquoted! Choice examples are ‘the
Cyrus’ (p. 36), relectur (p. 46), and ‘the hier apparent’ (p. 106). Some-
times, the boundary between the misprint and ungrammatical, even
incoherent, English is hard to discern. One cannot avoid the impression
of some carelessness at whatever level. This is typified by the seeming
ascription of Divino Afflante Spiritu to one Robert Robinson instead of
Pope Pius XII (p. 298). All this is a great pity because the author clearly
disposes of a wealth of erudition in both the exegesis of Isaiah and in
the Semitic languages. From this point of view, if they are prepared to
wade through it, it may be of some use to dedicated specialists.

Michael Tait
University of Manchester
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308 Biblical Studies

夹 夹 夹

Sex and the Single Savior: Gender and Sexuality in Biblical

Interpretation, Dale B. Martin, Westminster John Knox Press, 2006
(ISBN 978-0-664-23046-3), xii + 268 pp., pb, $29.95

This book includes six essays Dale B. Martin wrote between 1995 and
2003, along with three additional essays, an introduction, and a conclu-
sion all based on various lectures Martin gave in 2001 and 2004. There
is much more in this book than the subtitle may suggest. Not only are
these essays an important exploration of the intersections of gender,
sexuality, and biblical interpretation, but they also introduce stimulat-
ing new ideas about postmodern biblical criticism and Christian theo-
logical interpretation of the Bible. Martin’s proposals, written in a style
accessible to scholars and general readers alike, merit serious attention
and debate by all those interested in the interpretation of the Bible in a
postmodern context.
Martin’s introduction is a brief but trenchant critique of what he calls
‘the myth of textual agency’, which is the notion that texts ‘speak’.
Drawing language from both poststructuralism and Christian theology,
Martin criticizes what he calls ‘the sin of Christian textual foundation-
alism’, which is the notion that the text of the Bible provides a firm
foundation for doctrine and ethics if only its message is passively
‘heard’. Martin deconstructs notions of authorial intention and histori-
cal reconstruction, as well as theological rationales for historical criti-
cism. He insists that there are no reliable textual foundations, and he
invites readers to respond to this by learning ‘. . . to live faithful and
ethical lives without secure foundations’ (p. 16).
Martin next engages in a rhetorical analysis of modernist, founda-
tionalist biblical scholarship by considering several approaches to the
interpretation of Rom. 1:18–27. He describes several rhetorical tech-
niques employed by biblical scholars: emphasizing differences in time
and culture; quoting one passage of scripture as a counterpoint to
another; claiming that the passage is really about something else; shift-
ing attention from what the text says to what the author intended;
deriving rules or abstract principles from narratives; claiming that a
statement in the text is being quoted but is not necessarily being
endorsed. Martin then analyzes the use of such rhetorical techniques in
selected works by Robert A. J. Gagnon, Richard B. Hays, Francis
Watson, and L. William Countryman.
In the next essay, Martin discusses the translation of the Greek terms
arsenokoitês and malakos in vice lists in 1 Cor. 6:9 and 1 Tim. 1:10. Martin
considers the consequences of his discussion not only for the interpre-
tation of these texts but also for biblical interpretation in general. In
© 2008 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2008 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
Biblical Studies 309

seeking guidance within the contingency of nonfoundationalist inter-

pretation, Martin introduces a notion that he discusses further later in
the book. He draws from Augustine’s Christian Doctrine a criterion for
an ethics of biblical interpretation: ‘Whoever, therefore, thinks that he
understands the divine scriptures or any part of them so that it does not
build the double love of God and of our neighbor does not understand
it at all’ (p. 49).
Martin focuses on Pauline texts in the next three essays. First, he
analyzes the role of heterosexism in the production of interpretations of
Rom. 1:18–32 that read homosexual desire in the text. Second, he argues
for reading 1 Cor. 7 as Paul’s rejection of desire in sex and marriage.
Finally, he analyzes ‘the queer history’ of Gal. 3:28, which has been read
as a text advocating ascetic asexuality, gender equality in Christ, and
gender equality in both Christ and society. Martin ultimately suggests a
‘postmodern queer reading’ that dispenses with gender dimorphism
altogether.
In the next essay, Martin considers the sexuality of Jesus from the
perspectives of ‘the popular imagination’, ‘the historical imagination’,
‘the patristic imagination’, and ‘the gay imagination’. Martin argues
that all these methods of interpretation are ‘imaginings’, and that
none can claim hegemony in biblical interpretation. Martin invites
readers to consider embracing a nonfoundationalist world in which
people interpret the Bible in different ways and produce different
Jesuses.
In the next two essays, Martin addresses what he sees as the
idolatry of ‘traditional family values’ in contemporary American
Christianity. First, he draws on historical analyses of Jesus, Luke-Acts,
Revelation, the ‘pro-family’ Paul, the ‘antifamily’ Paul, the Jovinian
controversy, and the Puritan revolution, to argue against the claim
that ‘traditional family values’ are simply ‘biblical’, and he concludes
that the history of the Christian case against marriage provides
resources that can inspire new, ‘Queer’ visions of Christian commu-
nity. Second, he considers ‘the hermeneutics of divorce’. Martin dem-
onstrates that Christian foundationalist interpreters have attempted
throughout history to find a way around Jesus’ strict prohibition of
divorce and remarriage, in order to preserve marriage. Martin argues
instead that readers consider the historical probability that Jesus
forbade divorce and remarriage precisely in order to destroy marriage
and to create spaces for radical new eschatological notions of com-
munity, family, and sexual relations.
Martin next analyzes Paul’s interpretation of scripture in Gal. 3–4 and
1 Cor. 10. He argues that Paul interprets scripture to fit his experiences
and the experiences of his converts. Ultimately, though, Martin decon-
structs the binary opposition between scripture and experience. He
argues that reading scripture influences the experiences of Christians
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310 Biblical Studies

and that each reading of scripture is itself an experience. He concludes

that when gay and lesbian Christians bear witness to our experience of
being full members of the body of Christ, we need not see ourselves as
ignoring or rejecting scripture, rather we can see ourselves as following
Paul’s example in interpreting scripture.
In his conclusion, Martin suggests that he might call his own
approach to biblical interpretation ‘postmodern Christian historicism’.
He argues that his approach is postmodern because it denies mod-
ernism’s foundations; it is Christian because it is interested in how
Christians read texts that they take to be scripture; and it is histori-
cism because while it makes use of the tools of historiography, it does
so without assuming that the historical-critical method is objective,
nonbiased, or that it will yield the text’s ‘true meaning’. Returning
to the criterion of an ethics of interpretation he introduced earlier in
the book, Martin argues for a Christian reading of scripture from a
‘stance’ of love. He concludes the book with an invitation to readers
to ‘float on a sea of faith’ without scientific or historical or textual
foundations.
This book is an excellent introduction to Martin’s work. It is also a
stimulating exploration of questions that arise at the intersections of
gender, sexuality, postmodern biblical criticism, and Christian theo-
logical interpretation of the Bible. My own engagement with Martin’s
book has raised questions that I intend to pursue further: to whom
are Christians responsible for the interpretation of their own scrip-
tures? Is it possible, and would it be useful, to articulate a theology of
Christian interpretation of scripture focused on reading ‘for the sake
of others’?

Sean D. Burke
Luther College

夹 夹 夹

Studying the Ancient Israelites: A Guide to Sources and Methods,

Victor H. Matthews, Baker Academic, 2007 (ISBN 978-1-84474-225-7),
232 pp., pb £11.99

Matthews has put together an accessible and handy guide for orienting
and introducing the readers to sources available in studying ancient
Israelites and their world and methods and approaches biblical schol-
ars use to study the Hebrew Bible. It has helpful features, especially a
large number of sidebars that summarize information, that make this
book user-friendly. It provides a reference list of works, mostly from the
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Biblical Studies 311

last four decades, for further study. It has two indices: subject and
‘ancient writings’, though the latter includes only four extrabiblical
sources. The select bibliographies at the end of the first and last chap-
ters were helpful; for some reasons, he does not include bibliographies
at the end of the rest of the chapters. The book is divided into five
chapters: Historical Geography, Archaeology, Literary Approaches,
Social Sciences, and History and Historiography.
In Chapter 1 (Historical Geography), Matthews does a good job of
describing how ancient Israelites ‘imagined’ their land/space based on
physical reality but also on their theology and worldview. It is not his
intention to give an orientation to the physical geography of the region
but to explain how the ancient Israelites viewed their world. He helps
readers by illustrating the ‘imagined’ space in greater death by exam-
ining couple of biblical narrative (2 Samuel 15–7 and Amos 1–2) for
geographic issues. He, however, does not neglect the importance of
the real, physical world. He describes how ancient Israel was located
between two superpowers on a land bridge and, as a result, how its
welfare was shaped by its location.
In Chapter 2 (Archaeology), Matthews gives an experienced-based
description of an archaeologist at work and what is like to be part of
an archaeological dig. A narrative of steps involved in a typical
archaeological dig will give readers a good sense of how complex and
time consuming it really is. He explains well how an archaeologist
uses artifactual and textual evidence to reconstruct ancient Israel.
Under artifactual evidence, he discusses ceramics, different types of
buildings, tombs and burial customs, while repeatedly reminding the
readers of the limitations of the science of archaeology and the role of
the imagination of the archaeologist when she or he interprets the
data. Under textual evidence, he lists most important inscriptions
related to ancient Israel in a table form and gives a short description
to each. His conclusion with two sidebars, ‘Opportunities Raised by
Archaeology’ and ‘Limitations of Archaeology’, conveniently summa-
rizes this chapter.
In Chapter 3 (Literary Approaches), Matthews describes documents
from ancient Near East as forming an intellectual milieu within which
Hebrew Bible emerged and stresses the importance of methods in
studying it. He introduces some controversies over how to use (or not
to use) the Bible as a source for reconstructing the ancient Israel and
does a good job of staying neutral on the maximalist–minimalist debate.
He does not take sides with either the maximalists or the minimalists;
instead, he highlights opportunities and limitations of both camps.
Then he looks into a scholar’s ‘toolbox’ and surveys various tools of
interpretation: textual criticism, literary criticism, source criticism, form
criticism, tradition criticism, narrative criticism, structural criticism,
rhetorical criticism, reader-response criticism, canonical criticism,
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312 Biblical Studies

social-scientific criticism, ideological criticism (which includes a brief

discussion on feminist criticism). I commend him for listing as many
methods as he does, however, he gives too much space to methods that
fall under the rubric of historical criticism and scant attention to newer
methods.
In Chapter 4 (Social Sciences), I thought sidebars were especially
helpful in guiding the readers to understand how biblical scholars use
social sciences to reconstruct the third space, the ‘lived space’ of
ancient Israelites. He describes the importance of two crucial lived
spaces, namely city gates and threshing floor, and summarizes their
salient characteristics in an accessible format. He explains many
terms, methods, and models used by social sciences in clear, concise,
and convenient manners. Moreover, he, as a good teacher, also dem-
onstrates how stories reveal social elements of the world in which
ancient Israelites lived by examining the story of David and Goliath in
detail.
In Chapter 5 (History and Historiography), Matthews introduces ‘(1)
the process that led to the composition of the history of Israel by the
Israelites themselves and (2) how modern historians interpret that
writing process and the various sources available to us about the world
of ancient Israel’ (pp. 160–1). He again emphasizes the limitations and
the possibilities of what biblical scholars can do with available sources,
reminding the readers that the data available are incomplete. He, for
example, demonstrates the difficulty of reconstructing Sennacherib’s
701 BCE campaign even though there are available Assyrian annals,
relief panels in the palace of Nineveh, and biblical records of Sennach-
erib’s invasion that attest to this event. However, he is positive that the
documents from ancient Near East and the biblical narratives, used
with care and a degree of analytical skepticism, ‘do contain valuable
historical information and should not be abandoned or declared too
flawed to be used by scholars’ (p. 181).
I have been looking for a book like this to supplement my introduc-
tory courses to Hebrew Bible. There is a definite need for a book that
can supplement larger textbooks which normally cannot cover the bib-
lical and ancient Near Eastern sources and the myriad of methods
biblical scholars use to interpret the Bible. And this book fills that need
well. It treats readers to a world of sources and methods available to
students of the Bible and its world in an accessible manner. Readers
will gain a better understanding of the issues involved in interpreting
the Bible and reconstructing its world. All levels of students of the Bible
will benefit from reading this book and will become more informed by
it. I recommend this book.

Uriah Y. Kim
Hartford Seminary
© 2008 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2008 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
Biblical Studies 313

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The Gospels Today: Challenging Readings of John, Mark, Luke

and Matthew, Stephen W. Need, Cowley Publications, 2007 (ISBN
978-1-56101-297-8), 128 pp., pb $15.95

Paul Today: Challenging Readings of Acts and the Epistles, Stephen

W. Need, Cowley Publications, 2007 (ISNB 978-1-56101-296-1), 144 pp.,
pb $15.95

Stephen Need, the Dean of St. George’s College, the Anglican presence
in Jerusalem, has written two books, designed to be instructive, sen-
sible introductions to the main writings of the New Testament. Their
stand point is that of main stream present day scholarship and the
Author hopes to present its findings helpfully and calmly to a wide
audience. There is nothing strident or sensational here, rather quiet,
clear, informative reasoning. Each book contains a set of essays, dis-
cussing major issues or typical subjects of the writings concerned.
Volume 1 is Paul Today and among the range of subjects discussed are
Christology, Ethics and Ecclesiology; Original Sin; A Theology of Righ-
teousness in Paul; Paul and Women; Food, Conscience and the Eucharist
in 1 Corinthians and Marriage and Slavery in 1 Corinthians. Through-
out, Need debates and refrains familiar interpretations of Paul through
challenge and critique. His reading of the Bible is informed by pastoral
experience.
In the Gospels Today, there is a same approach. There are essays on
the prologue to the Gospels of John, titles of Jesus like Son of God and
Son of Man, and episodes in the Gospel such as The Transfiguration and
The Stilling of the Storm. One essay bravely tackles that most puzzling
of parables, The Unjust Steward in Luke 16.
The books succeed in offering an overview of some of the issues that
arise out of reading a text or theme from Paul or the Gospels. Need
demonstrates that in order to read the Bible a working knowledge of
what is at stake in trying to understand or interpret a particular text is
necessary. The chapters build up to show how there are different ways
of approaching New Testament texts and issues. In other words, we
need some understanding of how history and context have shaped the
text and our reading of it. Need demands that the text is treated with
both care and intelligence. He uses language, history, place, archaeol-
ogy, and other patristic readings of the text in an interdisciplinary
approach to interpretation.
The author’s skill and enthusiasm find expression in these chapters.
Here is a teacher who stimulates the reader to further thought and
study. Any reader will be left wanting to know and learn more.
© 2008 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2008 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
314 Biblical Studies

In conclusion, these books are to be commended for their clarity,

scholarship, and earthed good sense. I shall certainly be putting them to
use for those members of my Parish who want to engage in serious
biblical study. All of us, from whatever perspective, would do well to
learn from the way Need reads the Bible.

James Woodward
The Leveson Centre

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The Voice, the Word, the Books: The Sacred Scripture of the Jews,
Christians, and Muslims, F. E. Peters, Princeton University Press, 2007
(ISBN-10: 0-691-13112-0), 292 pp., hb $29.95

‘This book is about the antecedents and consequences of the claims of

the Jews, Christians, and Muslims to be in possession of the Word of
God’ (p. 1). This book studies the ways adherents of the three Abraha-
mic faiths identified and listened to the voice of God. It also studies
how God’s words were recorded, collected, arranged, and preserved in
their sacred books – the Bible (Peters’ designation for the Jewish Old
Testament), the New Testament (Peters’ designation of the Christian
Bible), and the Quran (the book Muslims believe God revealed to
Muhammad).
Christians might wonder at Peters’ designation of the New Testa-
ment as the Christian scripture rather than (in their view) the whole
Bible – the Old and New Testaments. For Peters, the Old Testament is
a different (Christian) version of the Hebrew/Jewish Bible. Peters’
designation flows from the fact that the Septuagint (a Greek transla-
tion of the Bible) was for many years used as the Christian Old Tes-
tament – and it contains books not found in the Jewish (Hebrew)
Bible. Even the Protestant version of the Old Testament which
excludes those apocryphal books is arranged differently than the
Bible: thus the distinction between the Bible and the Christian Old
Testament.
This book is not a comparison of the teachings of the three Abrahamic
faiths (Islam, Judaism, Christianity). Rather, it is an historical critical
study of how the scriptures of these three faiths moved from oral into
written form. This study of that transition finds answers that are tenta-
tive because of the thinness of the evidence available to a secular his-
torian. At times, conclusions are speculative and conjectural due to the
lack of hard evidence. Thus, some adherents of these three faiths will
disagree with certain portions of this book.
© 2008 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2008 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
Biblical Studies 315

Because not all are familiar with the content of these scriptures,
Peters gives an overview of the Bible and the New Testament. For the
Quran Peters gives an overview of the life of Muhammad and his
understanding of how the patterns of Muhammad’s life fit the contents
of the Quran.
Peters sees similarities and differences in these scriptures. The
Bible and the New Testament have canons – a clearly established
collection of books that are believed to be God’s Word to the exclu-
sion of all others. But the Quran is not a collection of many books as
are the Bible and the New Testament. It is one book of many chapters
called suras – thus, the concept of a canon does not really fit the
Quran.
As for similarities, all of these scriptures are believed by their adher-
ents to have come from the very hand or mouth of God.
The New Testament is viewed not so much as revelation but more as
a narrative story about the revelation – Jesus Christ. The Quran is set
forth as the book which can best lay claim to being ‘Revelation and
Scripture’ for it is more oral in nature and has much less editing, simply
recording God’s words in suras rather than placing them in a narrative
story like the authors and editors of the Gospels did with Jesus’ words
(p. 276). The Bible also claims status as God’s revelation, though its text,
like the New Testament, bears a lot of human hand prints.
Peters’ account of the history of these written texts, their transcrip-
tion, their versification, their various versions, their liturgical usage,
and the attempts to establish their authorized or standardized written
forms is fascinating and illuminating.
This book traces the movement from the scrolls of the Bible to the
leaved New Testament codex – the earliest form of what are now
referred to as books. This change in form enabled Christians to help
others see Jesus’ words and work in the New Testament as the fulfill-
ment of the Old Testament scriptures for the two texts could be bound
together as one book.
The versions and translations of various scriptures are discussed –
Origen’s Hexapla, the Syro-Hexapla, various editions of the Septuagint,
the Old Latin, various editions of Jerome’s Vulgate, Cisneros’ Polyglot,
Erasmus’ Novum Instrumentum and the editions that followed. Also
examined are the attempts at comparing the different scriptural texts –
the Greek Septuagint with the Hebrew Bible, and the Greek New Tes-
tament with the Latin Vulgate.
The similarities and differences between the two standardized texts
of the Bible are also described. Sefer Torahs are pure consonantal texts
without vocalization marks, punctuation marks, or verse divisions and
are rigidly and painstakingly copied. These Torahs contrast with the
Masoretic codex texts which contain vowel pointing, vocalization
marks, pronunciation guides, and other helps.
© 2008 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2008 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
316 Biblical Studies

The versification of these scriptures and their division into chapters,

verses, and suras are to help readers find specific material in their
written or printed forms.
Jews and Christians have translated their sacred books into many
different languages and view those translations as God’s Word. For
Muslims translations of the Quran are viewed differently. God spoke
Arabic in revealing the Quran to Muhammad. The Quran’s ‘style and
diction’ indicate ‘its divine origin’ (p. 70). The many translations of the
Quran are considered ‘appreciations’ of the Quran, but they are not the
‘clear Arabic Quran’ (p. 218). Thus, for Muslims ‘a translated Quran is
not really a Quran’ (p. 216).
Peters writes about the introduction of artwork into the Bible and the
New Testament which depicted various events and people therein.
Jewish texts gradually had illustrations added to them. For Christians
the question of biblical illustrations is bound up with the iconoclastic
controversies of Eastern Orthodoxy and the era of the Reformation
(Karlstadt) which touched on the question (asked both by Christians
and Jews) as to whether or not such artwork violated the Second
Commandment. Ultimately, for Christians it was felt that religious art
was like Jesus’ incarnation through which He [God] was clothed in
human flesh and became visible, touchable, and tangible to human
beings. Many believed that religious art enhanced the meaning of the
written texts.
Artwork in the Quran avoids the representation of persons, and is
basically geometric or floral in design. Though Quranic art or decora-
tion does not depict events and persons as Christian and Jewish scrip-
tural art do, Peters believes that Quranic art or decoration does add
‘another level of meaning’ if not to the Quran itself at least to the copy
in the reader’s hand (p. 246).
This beautifully illustrated book was published in conjunction with
an exhibition at the British Library entitled ‘Sacred’ which from April to
September of 2007 displayed texts of the Abrahamic faiths at the British
Library, and was seen by over 200,000 visitors.
Readers of The Voice, The Word, The Books will gain a better understand-
ing of how the Abrahamic faiths see and use their sacred texts. Adherents
of these religions will be helped to see the importance and reverence they
should give their own sacred books, as well as the importance and
reverence adherents of other faiths have for their sacred books. Such
knowledge will aid interfaith understanding and respect.

Armand J. Boehme
People of God Evangelical Lutheran Seminary

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© 2008 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2008 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
Biblical Studies 317

According to the Scriptures? The Use of the Bible in Social, Moral

and Political Questions, J. W. Rogerson, Equinox, 2007 (ISBN
978-1-84553-128-7), ix + 117 pp., pb $24.95

This is the first volume in a new series, Biblical Challenges in the

Contemporary World, of which John Rogerson is also the editor.
The series arises out of meetings of an informal and ecumenical Bible
and Society Group, who discuss the use of the Bible today. Rogerson
says of the series: ‘While addressed primarily to members of churches
who are also committed to the Bible as a foundation document of
faith, it is to be hoped that the series will also be of interest to a
general readership, and that it will indicate how the Bible can speak
to today’s world in a non-fundamentalist and non-literalist manner’
(p. ix).
Rogerson begins with the slogan ‘go by the book’, and in time-
honored, but nonetheless lucid and lively, manner sets out the diffi-
culties with knowing what it might mean to implement such a slogan,
given the diverse and often problematic content which a reading of
the Bible beginning at Genesis 1 quickly reveals. Rogerson targets a
certain kind of contemporary ‘conservative’ whose appeals to biblical
authority are selective of biblical content and ignorant of the history of
biblical interpretation. Rogerson’s prime mode of argument is to set
out a concise history of biblical interpretation in relation mainly to
ethical questions, a history that is predominantly Christian, but with
some space also for Jewish approaches (mostly Rashi, Ibn Ezra, Mai-
monides). Although his account is illustrative rather than comprehen-
sive, all the interpreters chosen are genuinely representative of
substantive Christian options down the ages. Rogerson shows that
most classic interpreters had considerable nuance in their handling of
the Bible, that they often appealed to natural law in ways that can
sound surprising today, and that even Richard Baxter, who was com-
mitted to the infallibility of the Bible, was far more differentiated than
some of his Reformed successors.
Rogerson concludes with some case studies (marriage, lending at
interest, sexuality), in which his own positive proposals are displayed.
Scripture offers examples more than precepts; the distinction between
the spirit and the letter remains crucial; and the task for people today is
to formulate ‘structures of grace’ which enable us to do in our day what
the biblical writers did in theirs.
There are areas where one might quibble. There is relatively little, for
example, on the role of the Bible in formation of individual conscience
or of ecclesial practice; his use of the Bible can at times sound individu-
alistic; and he does not attempt to say how his principles of interpreta-
tion might relate to renewed proposals for a ‘rule of faith’ in biblical
interpretation.
© 2008 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2008 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
318 Biblical Studies

Overall, however, Rogerson’s writing is always lucid, and models the

kind of intellectual honesty that he hopes to encourage in other users of
the Bible, whether or not they agree with him. His accounts of the
history of biblical interpretation are succinct and accessible and would
be valuable for any student at level one or two. A fine start to a prom-
ising series.

Walter Moberly
Durham University

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Greed as Idolatry: The Origin and Meaning of a Pauline Metaphor,

Brian S. Rosner, Eerdmans, 2007 (ISBN 978-0-8028-3374-7), 213 pp., pb
$22.00

Aware that moderns often view greed as a fairly minor concern relative
to other vices and sins, Brian S. Rosner notes that Colossians 3:5 and
Ephesians 5:5 actually equate greed with idolatry – biblically speaking,
the most serious of sins. In this thorough and impressive exegetical
study, Rosner explores the meaning and significance of the radical
assertion that ‘greed is idolatry’.
Although Rosner concludes that it is impossible to determine
‘whether the expression is original to Colossians and Ephesians’ (p. 99),
he finds that ‘the thought, if not the words themselves, probably have a
Jewish origin’ (p. 100). Viewed within this Jewish framework, ‘the way
for the expression seems to have been paved by the comprehensive
scope of the first commandment, by the characterization of idolatry in
terms of evil desire, and above all by the association of wealth with
apostasy’ (p. 99).
Rosner’s examination of greed indicates further that ‘the greedy are
those with a strong desire to acquire and keep for themselves more and
more money and possessions, because they love, trust, and obey wealth
rather than God’ (p. 129). To the extent that idolatry involves the ‘notion
of exclusivity’ (p. 148), the greedy are guilty of idolatry. ‘Indeed’,
according to Rosner, ‘among the vices, greed arguably stakes a claim to
being the best candidate for the label idolatry, since it is portrayed
throughout scripture and Jewish moral teaching as a potent and insidi-
ous rival to God that competes for the human heart’ (p. 174).
Rosner’s study serves as a model of solid exegetical and historical
research. His methodological approach, which he likens to the process
of climbing a mountain, proceeds step-by-step through an evaluation of
(1) the history of interpretation (Rosner finds nine ways in which ‘greed
© 2008 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2008 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
Biblical Studies 319

is idolatry’ has been understood); (2) potential sources (i.e. Jewish

scriptural and moral teaching, as well as the New Testament); (3) the
use and function of metaphor (Rosner carries out four ‘interpretive
tasks’ in this regard [i.e. ‘preparing’, ‘feeling’, ‘mapping’, and ‘compar-
ing’]); and the contemporary connotations ‘greed’ (pp. 103–29) and
‘idolatry’ (pp. 130–48) may have had that would potentially relate to the
Pauline phrase in question. The result is a careful examination of a
metaphor whose meaning has been assumed and asserted more often
than evaluated; as such, Rosner’s work is a welcome contribution both
to the interpretation of Colossians and Ephesians and to the broader
field of Pauline ethics.
Biblical scholarship of the kind that Rosner does is not only impor-
tant for its historical and literary insights. Also significant is the con-
temporary relevance of this inquiry, theologically and ecclesiologically
speaking. Especially suggestive are some concluding reflections Rosner
offers on greed in modern society, in which he likens the Bible’s under-
standing of greed to ‘a quasi-religion’ (p. 168). He gently warns that
‘many people [today] may implicitly love, trust, and serve their money
and possessions in ways that traditional religion reserved for God’
(p. 171). Then as now, greed should be understood as idolatry.

Michael Barram
Saint Mary’s College of California

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Rooted in Detachment: Living the Transfiguration, Kenneth

Stevenson, Darton, Longman and Todd Ltd, 2007 (ISBN-10:
0-232-52692-3, ISBN-13: 978-0-232-52692-9), 175 pp., pb £10.95

‘Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death
until they see that the Kingdom of God has come with power’ (Mark
9:1). So begins the Transfiguration narrative in the earliest of the syn-
optic gospels. In his most recent book, Kenneth Stevenson offers a
multi-layered reading, akin to a reception history, of the Transfiguration
narratives that incorporates patristic exegesis, biblical scholarship,
iconographic narrative, and personal experience of serious illness. The
result is a work that functions in a variety of ways accessible to a wide
audience, as discussion of Jesus’ transfiguro (’to change in form’)
exposes a central means by which Christians, as followers, are called to
be transformed and to participate in the transformation of their world.
Stevenson has taken care to structure the book so that it introduces
readers to the Transfiguration narratives singularly and comparatively.
© 2008 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2008 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
320 Biblical Studies

Inclusion of a chart that compares these narratives, found at the

opening of the book, serves as a useful reference in this respect. The
book opens with a brief treatment of the early Christian adoption and
adaptation of the word transfiguro. ‘The term as used in the New Tes-
tament, whether in the gospels or by Paul in his letters, is about a
profound change, by God in the Christ through the Spirit. Transfigura-
tion therefore is not like a picture of something long dead and gone but
resembles more an icon that draws us into its own narrative, which
is the life of God among us now’ (p. 3). Discussion of how one might
read the Eastern Christian icon, The Transfiguration of the Lord, by
Theophanes the Greek (Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow), found on the
book’s cover, bears this out and requires the reader to approach subse-
quent chapters from an interpretive framework in which narrative,
icon, and lived context intersect. Stevenson suggests: ‘We need to break
down these neat distinctions. You cannot have icon without gospel
narrative, and gospel narrative inevitably forms some sort of scene in
the mind. The Transfiguration is so vivid and central a scene that it has
audience participation from the word go, which “pivots” back into the
rest of the gospel’ (p. 12). Subsequent chapters invite the reader to
reconsider the journey of the Transfiguration by recounting isolated
moments presented in the narratives in sequential order. This structure
has the effect of highlighting, for the reader, the stages in which the
exterior movement of the event mirrors the interior transformation
effected. The chapter titles that delineate these stages, listed in order
here, are: promise, ascent, change, visitors, enthusiasm, cloud, voice,
and descent. For each of these, Stevenson weaves a balanced, engaging
presentation of his sources. In his final chapter, ‘Discipleship Transfig-
ured’, Stevenson returns to one of his opening observations about the
‘hovering’ place of the Transfiguration given its distinctive renderings
in different liturgical calendars (in some Christian communities, it is
celebrated of as an annual festival in August, whereas in other commu-
nities, it is commemorated during the season of Lent). As both event
and process, ‘Transfiguration pulls us out of the mire of our ordinari-
ness . . . It does, therefore, mean looking again at the subtle interaction
of the mountain-top experience and the plodding walk of faith across
the plain of dull, everyday life’ (p. 151).

Bernadette McNary-Zak
Rhodes College

© 2008 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2008 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.