Chapter 1

An Overview of the New Testament

Key Topics/Themes

New Testament: twenty-seven documents Four Gospels A church history Letters An apocalypse Other Christian documents Diversity of early Jesus movement

2009 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

What Is the New Testament?

The New Testament as scripture Appreciating the cultural world of the New Testament

A society far different from ours The Jewish world of Jesus: Palestine An agrarian, peasant society Interaction of Palestinian Jewish and GrecoRoman cultures

2009 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

The New Testament and the Hebrew Bible

Relationship between the New Testament and the Hebrew Bible The Hebrew Bible as Scripture for early Christians

2009 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

Testament and Covenant

The nature of the covenant with Yahweh in the Hebrew Bible The promise of a new covenant
(Jer. 31:31)

Jesus declaration of a New Covenant

2009 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

The Septuagint

Written in Alexandria, Egypt Beginning about 250 BCE Legend in the Letter of Aristeas Abbreviation: LXX Standard biblical text for Jews in New Testament period Version most frequently quoted in New Testament

2009 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

Language and Literature of the New Testament

Koin Greek New Testament literary forms

Gospel Church history Letters, or epistles Apocalyptic literature Subgenres within New Testament books

2009 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

Diversity and Unity in the New Testament Documents

Early Christians ethnically and theologically diverse Gentile Christians Jewish Christians Community of the Gospel of John Pseudonymous works Diverse views toward Roman authority

2009 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

Other Early Christian Literature

Struggle for orthodoxy and contents of the New Testament Diverse interpretations of importance of Jesus in Gods plan The Gospel of Thomas

2009 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

Scholarly Approaches to the New Testament

Scholarly vs. devotional approaches Development of analytical methods for biblical research Biblical criticism Coordinating critical methodologies and spiritual concerns

2009 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

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The New Testament Read from Different Social Perspectives

A readers individual experience and viewpoint inform the meaning. Much of our biblical heritage contains disparate elements that are almost inextricably blended.

2009 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

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Summary

New Testament

Greek documents Written c. 50-140 CE

Hebrew Bible (Tanak) Other Christian documents Diversity of early Christianity Importance of scholarly analysis

2009 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

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