Showing papers on "Exegesis published in 1999"

Reading Renunciation: Asceticism and Scripture in Early Christianity

Abstract: Acknowledgments xi Abbreviation List xv CHAPTER ONE Introduction 3 CHAPTER TWO Asceticism in Late Ancient Christianity 14 Reading for Asceticism CHAPTER THREE Reading in the Early Christian World 45 CHAPTER FOUR The Profits and Perils of Figurative Exegesis 70 CHAPTER FIVE Exegetical and Rhetorical Strategies for Ascetic Reading 104 CHAPTER SIX Three Models of Reading Renunciation 153 Rejection and Recuperation: The Old Dispensation and the New CHAPTER SEVEN From Reproduction to Defamilialization 177 CHAPTER EIGHT From Ritual to Askesis 204 CHAPTER NINE The Exegesis of Divorce 233 Reading Paul CHAPTER TEN I Corinthians 7 in Early Christian Exegesis 259 CHAPTER ELEVEN From Paul to the Pastorals 330 Afterword 371 Bibliograpky 375 Select Index of Biblical Passages 401 Select General Index 409

Medieval Music as Medieval Exegesis

Abstract: Flynn includes contextual and philosophic interpretation that encompasses biblical exegesis, medieval studies, Latin linguistics and ecclesiastical history. Flynn's comprehensive analysis shows that the interdisciplinary dimensions of the expanding field must be understood beyond their traditional boundaries. Medieval Music as Medieval Exegesis reconstructs the creation of liturgies by examining the influences of grammatical studies, traditions, the period's music style, and the use of the scripture within the liturgy. Offering a new approach to the study of musicology, Flynn's analysis is based on the premise that liturgy is more than text, encompassing a three-dimensional study that goes beyond the liturgical forms, structures, primary elements, and words. This study is especially note-worthy in that it appeals to not only musicologists and liturgists, but also biblical exegetes, historians, and literature students. The inclusion of sufficient introductory material enables the novices to handle the material with the same depth as the experts. An invaluable resource that develops the interdisciplinary dimensions of liturgical musicology, Medieval Music as Medieval Exegesis offers an in-depth and innovative look into the expansion of this evolving discipline and provides a foundation for more collaborative work.

Jeremiah 1-20: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary

Abstract: Jeremiah, long considered one of the most colorful of the ancient Israelite prophets, comes to life in Jack R. Lundbom's "Jeremiah 1-20". From his boyhood call to prophecy in 627 b.c.e., which Jeremiah tried to refuse, to his scathing judgments against the sins and hypocrisy of the people of Israel, Jeremiah charged through life with passion and emotion. He saw his fellow Israelites abandon their one true God, and witnessed the predictable outcome of their disregard for God's word - their tragic fall to the Babylonians.The first book of a three-volume "Anchor Bible" commentary, Jack R. Lundbom's eagerly awaited exegesis of "Jeremiah" investigates the opening twenty chapters of this Old Testament giant. With considerable skill and erudition, Lundbom leads modern readers through this prophet's often mysterious oracles, judgments, and visions. He quickly dispels the notion that the life and words of a seventh-century b.c.e. Israelite prophet can have no relevance for the contemporary reader. Clearly, Jeremiah was every bit as concerned as we are with issues like terrorism, hypocrisy, environmental pollution, and social justice.This impressive work of scholarship, essential to any biblical studies curriculum, replaces John Bright's landmark "Anchor Bible" commentary on "Jeremiah". Like its predecessor, "Jeremiah 1-20" draws on the best biblical scholarship to further our understanding of the weeping prophet and his message to the world.

The New Interpreter's Bible Commentary

Abstract: General Historical Outline. After Cyrus and the Persians conquered Babylon in 539 B.C.E., the king issued a decree that commanded the Jews, who had been exiled in 597 and 586, to return home and rebuild the Temple....Darius I reaffirmed the decree of Cyrus and ordered the rebuilding of the Temple to continue. The Temple was dedicated in 516 B.C.E....About fifty-eight years later, Artaxerxes I (465–424) sent Ezra, the priest and scribe of the law of the God of heaven, to Jerusalem. Within his first year Ezra led the people in a public confession of sin because of their intermarriage with foreigners and saw the creation of a commission that carried out the removal of the foreign wives and their children.

The theological interpretation of Scripture : classic and contemporary readings

Abstract: Acknowledgements. List of Contributors. Introduction. Part I: The Contexts of Theological Interpretation: 1. Spiritual Understanding: Henri de Lubac, S. J. (French Jesuit Theologian, 1896-1991), Translated by Luke O'Neill. 2. The Superiority of Pre-Critical Exegesis: David C. Steinmetz (Duke University). 3. The Story-Shaped Church: Critical Exegesis and Theological Interpretation: George Lindbeck (Yale University). 4. Feminist Theological Hermeneutics: Canon and Christian Identity: Claudia V. Camp (Texas Christian University). 5. The Bible and African Americans: An Outline of an Interpretative History: Vincent L. Wimbush (Union Theological Seminary in New York). 6. The New Testament and the Nicene Dogma: A Contribution to the Recovery of Theological Exegesis: David S. Yeago (Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary). Part II: Theological Interpretations of Select Biblical Texts: Exodus 3: 7. Selections from Gregory of Nyssa's Life of Moses: Translated and introduced by Joseph W. Trigg (Rector, Christ Church, Port Tobacco Parish, La Plata, Maryland). 8. Selections from Nicholas of Lyra's Commentary on Exodus: Translated and introduced by Corrine Patton (University of St Thomas). 9. Three Postcritical Encounters with the Burning Bush: Peter Ochs. 10. Exodus 3: A Theological Interpretation: Terence E. Fretheim (Luther Northwestern Theological Seminary). 11. Exodus 3: Summons to Holy Transformation: Walter Brueggemann (Columbia Theological Seminary). Isaiah 52-53: 12. Selections from Theodoret of Cyrus's Commentary on Isaiah: Translated and introduced by Angela Russell Christman (Loyola College, Maryland). 13. Selections from John Calvin's Sermons on Isaiah: Translated and introduced by Kathryn Greene-McCreight (Yale College). 14. Speech and Silence in the Servant Passages: Towards a Final-Form Reading of the Book of Isaiah: Tod Linafelt (Georgetown University). 15. Selections from I, He , We, They: A Literary Approach to Isaiah 53: David J. A. Clines (University of Sheffield). 16. Engaging Metaphors: Suffering with Zion and the Servant in Isaiah 52-53: Beverly J. Stratton (Augsburg College). Matthew 5-7: 17. Selections from John Chrysostom's Homilies on Matthew: Translated and Introduced by Robin Darling Young (The Catholic University of America). 18. Selections from Martin Luther's Sermons on the Sermon on the Mount: Translated and Introduced by Mark S. Burrows (Andover Newton Theological School). 19. Righteousness from the Inside: The Transformative Spirituality of the Sermon on the Mount: Brian K. Blount (Princeton Theological Seminary). 20. Selections from The Cost of Discipleship: Dietrich Bonhoeffer (Theologian, Pastor in the Confessing Church in Germany, Martyr, 1906-45). 21. The Sermon on the Mount as Radical Pastoral Care: Richard Lischer (Duke University). Romans 9-11: 22. Selections from Augustine's Propositions from the Epistle to the Romans and To Simplician - on Various Questions: Introduced by Peter Gorday (Georgia Association for Pastoral Care). 23. Selections from Thomas Aquinas's Commentary on Romans: Translated and Introduced by Eugene F. Rogers, Jr. (University of Virginia). 24. Romans 10:4 and the 'End' of the Law: Paul W. Meyer (Princeton Theological Seminary). 25. Divine Initiative and Human Response: E. Elizabeth Johnson (New Brunswick Theological Seminary). 26. Figure and Ground in the Interpretation of Romans 9-11: Neil Elliott (The College of St Katherine). Index.

Handbook of Patristic Exegesis: The Bible in Ancient Christianity

Abstract: Through this Handbook of Patristic Exegesis, the reader will obtain a balanced and cohesive picture of the Early Church. It gives an overall view of the reception, transmission, and interpretation of the Bible in the life and thought of the Church during the first five centuries of Christianity, the so-called patristic era. The handbook offers the context and presuppositions necessary for understanding the development of the interpretative traditions of the Early Church, in its catechesis, its liturgy and as a foundation of its systems of theology. The handbook presents a comprehensive overview of the history of patristic exegesis. Apart from a general introduction to the major topics in this field, it contains essays by leading patristic scholars on the most important Church Fathers, such as Augustine, Irenaeus, Origen, Gregory of Nyssa, and others. The essays are supplemented by bibliographies of editions and studies on patristic exegesis published from 1945 until 1995. Together, these bibliographies form the only comprehensive bibliography presently available on this topic. The Handbook of Patristic Exegesis is being reprinted in an unabridged one volume edition (expected publication June 2006).

Scripture and exegesis in early Imāmī-Shiism

Abstract: Since the publication in 1921 of Ignaz Goldziher's Die Richtungen der islamischen Koransauslegung, which includes a discussion of Imami exegesis, no comprehensive work on this topic has appeared. In the intervening years, important Imami commentaries on the Qur'an have become available, making possible a reappraisal of the subject. The present study aims to contribute to this task, primarily by examining the features and methods of Imami exegesis. Principally, it offers a description and analysis of the major tenets of Imami doctrine, as reflected in the earliest Imami works of exegesis and related sources, up to the Major Occultation of the twelfth Imam in 329/941. These include, among others, the belief in a primordial covenant between God and the Shi'a, and the superhuman and mystical qualities with which the Imams were graced, such as their God-given, infinite knowledge, their intercession on behalf of their community, their immunity from sin and error, etc. Other tenets relate to the attitude of Imami Shi'ism to its enemies, e.g. the duty to denigrate and dissociate from them. These and similar ideas are constant motifs in Imami exegesis, and are linked time and again with various Qur'anic verses. Relying on classical and modern Arabic sources, Sunni and Shi'i alike, as well as on a wide range of western research, Meir Bar-Asher sheds new light on the Imami methods of exegesis and on the principal Imami doctrines as reflected in the early Imami exegetical corpus.

Christ and Community: A Socio-Historical Study of the Christology of Revelation

Abstract: Christ and Community: A Socio-Historical Study of the Christology of Revelation, by Thomas B. Slater. JSNTSup 178. Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1999. Pp. 281. $75.00/k46.00. This revised doctoral dissertation at King's College London, University of London (under Graham N. Stanton) uses historical criticism and sociology of knowledge to examine the three major christological images in the Apocalypse: one like a son of man, the Lamb, and the Divine Warrior. The aim of Slater's study is "(1) to ascertain the role and function of Christ within Revelation's symbolic universe through its use of the `one like a son of man,' the Lamb and the Divine Warrior images; (2) to understand how these images affected the life of the Christian communities in Asia in the first century C.E." (p. 63). In the introduction, Slater describes the characteristics of apocalyptic literature and situates the book of Revelation in the mid-nineties, when Asian Christians were enduring limited oppression for their religious beliefs and for their refusal to participate in the imperial cult. He reviews several major studies of the Christology of the Apocalypse (F. Buchsel, J. Comblin, and T. Holtz) and then describes the benefits of a sociological and historical approach to Revelation. According to Slater, the primary benefit of a sociology-of-knowledge approach is that it identifies the social function of a tradition in Revelation and then demonstrates how this tradition has influenced the imagery of Christ in the book. Slater, however, is aware of the limitations of the method. It is difficult to determine whether the relationship between symbol and community is symmetrical or asymmetrical; whether it denies or intensifies an empirical experience; and whether religious symbols reflect a real situation in a community or an ideal situation for which the author hopes. Chapter 2 reviews the Jewish background for one-like-a-son-of man tradition from Ezekiel to apocalyptic Jewish writings in the early decades of the second century C.E. and concludes with a detailed exegesis of the tradition in Revelation. Chapter 3 demonstrates the similarities between the presentation of the Messiah in Rev 1:1-20 and the messianic figures in the Similitudes of Enoch and 4 Ezra 13. In ch. 4 Slater constructs the social profile of the seven churches: six of the seven letters address internal problems within the churches, and the seventh, the letter to Smyrna, speaks to Jewish oppression of Christians. The second major image of Christ in the Apocalypse, the Lamb, is the subject of ch. 5. Slater concludes that the Lamb's "most important christological function involves leading an eschatological Christian community whose destination is the New Jerusalem" (p. 200). …

Images of Jesus Christ in Islam

Abstract: Preface 1 Introduction 2. Christ in the Qur'an and in Hadith 3. Jesus in Muslim legend and Qur'anic exegesis 4. Jesus in Shi'ite tradition 5. Jesus in Sufism 6. Encounters and confrontations: dialogue, apologetics, polemics 7. Twentieth-century tendencies and discussions 8. Issues of dialogue Postscript: Knowing with oneself, knowing with the other: A 'conscientous' dialogue between religions? Bibliography Index of authors.

Die liminale Theologie des Paulus: Zugange zur paulinischen Theologie aus kulturanthropologischer Perspektive

Abstract: Die liminale Theologie des Paulus: Zugdnge zur paulinischen Theologie aus kulturanthropologischer Perspektive, by Christian Strecker. FRLANT 185. Gottingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1999. Pp. 504. EUR88.00. This book is based on a dissertation written under Wolfgang Stegemann and accepted by the Augustana-Hochschule Neuendettelsau in 1996. As the subtitle indicates, Strecker approaches Pauline theology from the perspective of cultural anthropology. He seeks to enrich our understanding of Paul's letters by highlighting social dimensions implied in them. The investigation is divided into three parts: anthropology and biblical exegesis; Victor Turner's processual anthropology and ritual research; and the liminal theology of Paul. The first part consists of two chapters. In ch. 1 Strecker points out that anthropology as part of a social scientific exegesis may serve as a method to bridge the gap between ancient and modern culture. He indicates that this approach has not yet been developed very far in biblical exegesis, especially in the area of NT research. This may be especially true with regard to European, and perhaps especially German, exegesis, with the possible exception of Stegemann, who, in developing Gerd Theissen's sociological impetus, became aware of the importance of anthropology. As far as American scholarship is concerned, Strecker refers to some approaches that have related anthropological insights to NT exegesis (especially John G. Gager, Wayne A. Meeks, Howard C. Kee, Bruce Malina, John D. Crossan, Stephen C. Barton, and Dale B. Martin), but in general, Strecker concludes that OT scholars are more inclined to take anthropological insights into consideration than their NT colleagues. Chapter 2 deals with the use of anthropological models and methodology. Strecker rightly emphasizes that every interpretation of reality inevitably refers to models, which structure our perception. Therefore, it is more plausible to use such models consciously than to reject them for being too abstract or positivistic, while overlooking the necessity of heuristic models for the knowledge of reality. On the other hand, there should be a balance between a particularizing versus universalizing application of such models in order to bring into focus the specific, or even unique, as well as the more general aspects of a given phenomenon. Strecker relies here on Clifford Geertz, who has treated the relationship of specific details and overarching structures in anthropological investigations. At the end of this chapter Strecker relates the anthropological approach to the interpretation of texts, describing (again by referring to Geertz) similarities between ethnography and exegesis. Both ethnographers and exegetes have to interpret given data, which are interpretations of reality themselves and consist of human acts or rituals on the one hand and of texts on the other. Neither anthropologists nor exegetes, therefore, deal with reality in a pure, unambiguous form. According to Strecker, an anthropologically oriented exegesis of biblical texts can thereby illuminate specific aspects, such as cultural bounded values and attitudes of their authors. Hence, an interdisciplinary cooperation of linguists and anthropologists in the form of a "literary anthropology" could contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of texts and should therefore also be fruitful for biblical exegesis. In the second part Strecker deals with the theory of the Scottish anthropologist Victor Turner. His approach was chosen because it is one of the basic models of anthropology developed in the twentieth century. In particular, Strecker describes his theory of rituals, symbols, as well as of society. The term "liminality," which is of central importance for Strecker's own model, however, was borrowed not from Turner but from Arnold van Gennep, who exerted some influence on Turner. In van Gennep's theory the term describes the medium stage in the transformational processes that characterize society. …

Isaiah's Servant Poems According to the Septuagint An Exegetical and Theological Study

Abstract: This study analyzes the Septuagint version of Isaiah's Servant Poems (Isaiah 42:1-8; 49:1-9; 50:4-11; 52:13-53:12) as a translation and unique interpretation of the Hebrew text. The Septuagint version of the Servant Poems is of interest not only because it represents one of the earliest (if not the first) interpretations of the Hebrew text and thus an important stage in the history of exegesis of these poems, but also because this translation operates a transition from Hebrew modes of thinking and expression into a Greek language and context. The Septuagint version of the Servant Poems was cited by New Testament writers, read and commented on as Sacred Scripture by the early Church Fathers and continues to be used by the Eastern Church. This study is a helpful resource to Old Testament, New Testament and Patristic scholars and theologians alike. The introduction offers a methodology for classifying Septuagint differences to determine the specific exegesis and underlying theology of a given Septuagint text. Differences with the Hebrew text are categorized according to linguistic explanations (style, the translator's difficulty determining Greek semantic equivalents for obscure Hebrew vocabulary, errors or omissions, etc.) Hebrew Vorlagen, non-linguistic explanations like contextual and intertextual exegesis and combinations of linguistic and non-linguistic factors. The author identifies over 270 differences with the Masoretic Text in a presentation of the Septuagint text of each poem side-by-side with the Masoretic Text. Qumran variants are compared with the Masoretic Text and Septuagint to help classify Septuagint differences to determine which may be signs of the Septuagint's unique exegesis and theology. The Septuagint's numerous differences are bold-faced in the English translation of each poem before the author presents a detailed verse-by-verse literary analysis of the Septuagint in the wider context of Isaiah 1-66 and the Greek Pentateuch. The author argues that the vast majority of Septuagint differences with the Masoretic Text in Isaiah's Servant Poems reflect contextual and intertextual exegesis. The Septuagint version expresses theological perspectives that are at times similar and often distinct from the Masoretic Text. In a final chapter the author draws on the exegesis of each poem in preceding chapters to present the theology visible in the Septuagint version of Isaiah's Servant Poems, concluding with an appendix that catalogues textual differences between the Septuagint and the Masoretic Text and a biblical index.

Literary Artistry in Leviticus

Abstract: This study explores the vocabulary employed in the extant text of Leviticus. The chosen methodology of rhetorical analysis (with particular emphasis upon terminological patterns) shows a carefully composed text. The basic working hypothesis that Leviticus has been artistically structured around 37 divine speeches 'and the Lord spoke/said to Moses (and Aaron)' . With chapter 16 as its possible structural and theological center has been substantiated both on the microstructural and macrostructural levels. The plethora of significant micro- and macrostructural terminological patterns, suggests original literary cohesiveness and hence single-handed authorship. These findings are of special significance regarding so-called "P" and "H" passages, a "layer of priestly reworking", and, even more, the exegesis and theology of Leviticus.

“What Did Ezekiel See?”: Patristic Exegesis of Ezekiel 1 and Debates about God's Incomprehensibility1:

Abstract: In his two-volume commentary on the prophet Ezekiel, the contemporary Old Testament scholar Walther Zimmerli treats Ezekiel's inaugural vision-a vision of God's flaming chariot borne by four cherubimin a section entitled "The Call" that expounds Ezekiel 1.1-3.15. Zimmerli's exegesis of these opening chapters compares this call narrative to other biblical call narratives, and addresses questions concerning the prophet's identity, the date and location of the call, the chapters' literary unity, textual emendation, and the text's tradition history. After spending almost sixty pages on these issues, Zimmerli turns to

Gender in the Book of Jeremiah: A Feminist-Literary Reading

Abstract: Bell & Howell Information and Learning: Foreign text omitted. ... Gender in the Book of Jeremiah: A Feminist-Literary Reading, by Angela Bauer. Studies in Biblical Literature 5. New York/Bern: Peter Lang, 1999. Pp. xiv + 203. $47.95. This slim volume addresses important questions usually treated only glancingly by Jeremiah scholars, with the notable exception of Robert Carroll. Bauer employs literary and rhetorical-critical methodologies from a feminist perspective to discern how gender (mainly the female) is "inscribed" through metaphors and images of the feminine in jeremiah. Chapter 1 describes the metaphorization of Israel as faithful bride and the "pornographic representation" of Israel as promiscuous woman in Jeremiah 1-2. Bauer faults "male commentators" for not acknowledging that the image of Israel's blood-stained skirts in 2:34 resonates with undertones of Israel as sexually violated female (p. 41), a reading she offers without argumentation. In chapter 2, Bauer discusses tropes "from divorce to labor pain" in Jeremiah 3-6, proposing that the prophet "impersonates" a woman in labor (4:19a) as a means of identification with doomed Jerusalem; that this might be Zion's voice (cf. 4:31 ) is not given adequate consideration. Chapter 3 highlights women's roles in "ritual and requiem" as leaders in worship of the Queen of Heaven (7:18) and as mourners (9:16-20), setting wise women's mourning in a rather strained contrast with "male wisdom, power, and wealth" in 9:22-23: "the wisdom of the men is worthless. . . . the only wisdom left in the land is ascribed to the women who know the music of mourning" (pp. 95-97). In chapter 4 Bauer reviews more metaphors of the sexually violated woman and other negative images (e.g., mother bereaved in 15:8-9, birth cursed in 20:14-18), including the unsettling portrayal of Jeremiah as having suffered metaphorical rape himself (20:7). In chapter 5, Bauer studies eschatological motifs in Jeremiah 30-31, seizing particularly on the enigmatic ...: ("female surrounds warrior-male") of 31:22b, wherein she finds "the promise of a new creation" that "embodies the functions of female imagery in the book of Jeremiah as a whole" (p. 145). Bauer is an intelligent and attentive reader, but she supplies too little argumentation for her more innovative readings, and there are significant flaws in the theoretical underpinnings of her exegesis. Debatable assumptions are in evidence regarding how a text's surface structure might architectonically convey a deeper semantic sense; for instance, she writes of 1:5, "the sentence structure around `the womb' symbolizes the content of the call: separation, protection, and challenge . . . . The three lines shrink in length visually symbolizing a focusing on the birth of the prophet" (pp. 13-14). In fact, 1:5 is precisely not about the birth of the prophet. More attention to complex questions of how metaphor and voice function in literature would have helped situate Bauer's own approach, which presumes that the implied reader is to "identify" with figures. For example, in 3:4-5 she discerns a "rhetorical strategy" pressing "male Israel" to identify with metaphorical wife, daughter, and husband/father, thus requiring the hapless ancient reader "both to try on identification with female Israel and to resist that role at the same time" (p. …

Balaam's Prophecies as Interpreted by Philo and the Aramaic Targums of the Pentateuch

Abstract: This chapter shows that Peder Borgen's thesis finds support not only in Philo's own writings, but also in traditional Jewish exegesis of the Balaam oracles. It describes how Borgen's description as imperial of the 'man' destined to arise from Israel; and suggests that the evidence allows for further definition of the man's identity. The chapter begins, with necessary preliminary observations about Philo's treatment of the Balaam oracles. Balaam spoke his first oracle as one possessed by the prophetic spirit which had ridded him of his soothsayer's craft, since it was not right for magical sophistry to dwell alongside most holy possession; the second oracle he prophesied in words not his own; and the third he spoke ἔvθoυς, inspired by God. Examination of the substance of Balaam's three oracles shows that Philo is familiar with traditions of Jewish exegesis preserved in the Aramaic Targums. Keywords: Aramaic Targums; Balaam oracles; God; Israel; Jewish exegesis; Peder Borgen; Philo; prophetic spirit

In search of true wisdom : essays in Old Testament interpretation in honour of Ronald E. Clements

Abstract: The distinguished authors whose essays appear in this volume (marking the seventieth birthday of Ronald Clements,who until his retirement, was the Samuel Davidson Professor of Old Testament Studies, King's College London) include John Barton, Walter Brueggemann, Brevard Childs, John Rogerson, Rolf Rendtorff, Hugh Williamson, the late Norman Whybray, Graeme Auld, Richard Coggins. The theme of the volume reflects Clements's recent interest in 'wisdom' as an interpretative framework, and the essays address the role of theology and hermeneutics in biblical exegesis, through an examination of methods and approaches as well as by application to specific Old Testament writings. While the volume ranges through issues of canon, biblical theology and literary criticism, with several essays on the prophetic books, it maintains a clear focus on the numerous issues and challenges facing the contemporary interpreter of the scriptures.

The beginnings of qur'anic exegesis

Abstract: English translation fo Gilliot, Les debuts de l'exegese coranique, REMMM, 58/4 (1990), p. 82-100 Since we have modified some of our points of view, in Gilliot, "L'exegese coranique : bilan partiel d'une decennie", Stud. Isl., 85 (1997), p. 155-62, then in Id., Exegesis of the Qur'ān : Classical and Medieval", in Encyclopaedia of the Qur'ān [EQ], II, Leyde, Brill, 2002, p. 104-108 (the whole, p. 99-124); Id., Kontinuitat und Wandel in der " klassischen " islamischen Koranauslegung (II./VIII.-XII./XIX. Jh.) ", Der Islam, 85 (2010), p. 7-18 (the whole, p. 1-155).

Windows on Jesus: Methods in Gospel Exegesis

Abstract: The four New Testament Gospels can be approached from very different perspectives and with very different methods. This book offers a readable and illuminating survey of them, based on years of teaching university students. Brief theoretical introductions are followed by a selection of illustrations, which are meant to serve as encouragement to a personal exploration. This book is meant for students in higher education, clergy and church leaders, and those involved in Bible groups, as well as the general reader.

The Eusebian apparatus in some Vulgate gospel books

Abstract: In certain Vulgate gospel books there is a full cross-referencing system that is based on the work of Eusebius of Caesarea. A study of this apparatus may tell us a great deal about the textual tradition and inter-relationships of gospel books, as well as providing information for the history of gospel exegesis. An edition, as a starting point for further comparisons, of this apparatus from St Gallen 1395 (oldest Vulgate codex) and the Book of Durrow is provided.

The Old Testament as Christian Scripture A Response to Professor Seitz

Abstract: L'A. repond a un article de Christophe Seitz consacre a son livre traitant d'exegese et de theologie biblique (Text and Truth. Redefinig Biblical Theology, Edinburgh, 1997). Il traite de la question du statut de l'Ancien Testament vu comme ecriture chretienne.

Jesajaforschung (Jes 1-39)

Abstract: L'article presente des travaux exegetiques recents consacres a Isaie 1-39. L'A. presente les nouvelles tendances de la recherche, les etudes portant sur l'unite compositionnelle et redactionnelle du livre et son origine.

Theologically Motivated Exegesis Embedded in the Septuagint

Abstract: Every translation of the Bible, or of any work dealing with one or more deities, is bound to contain theologically motivated exegesis. LXX reflects a biblical text that differs considerably from MT, and knowledge of its (theological) exegesis could provide many helpful insights into text-critical problems. This chapter focuses only on the (Greek) elements which the translation has in excess of the Hebrew, or which have been deleted from the Hebrew, for in these elements we can often recognize the mind(s) of the translator(s) and the world in which they lived. Although there is not as much evidence for messianic interpretation in the LXX as some scholars would like to believe, the translation of Numbers 24 does contain two instances of such exegesis. Although the translators generally felt free to render literally verses or words in which God is portrayed anthropomorphically, in some instances anthropomorphic expressions were avoided.Keywords: anthropomorphic expressions; messianic interpretation; septuagint; text-critical problems; theologically motivated exegesis

Medieval Exegesis and the Origin of Hermeneutics

Abstract: Dilthey, in his famous essay, ‘Die Enstehung der Hermeneutik’, first published in 1900, taught us that Matthias Flacius Illyricus, the mid sixteenth-century Lutheran theologian, was the author of the first significant treatise on hermeneutics. Conceding a classic Protestant opinion once articulated by Flacius, he consigned medieval interpretation to what must have seemed a justified oblivion: he simply ignored the period between Origen and John Calvin. Calvin, Flacius, and especially Friedrich Schleiermacher were the main contributors to the rediscovery of the interpretive force of history and language, which Dilthey surely felt was best appreciated by his own philosophy of culture. Hans-Georg Gadamer later tried to show that Dilthey himself was weak on language and misinformed about history, falling prey to the movement that Gadamer opprobriously called ‘historicism’. Gadamer's own view of the development of hermeneutics—with its subjection of historical knowledge to ‘our own present horizon of understanding’, its accent on language, and its debt to Martin Heidegger—shifted the chronology of hermeneutics even closer to the present According to Gadamer, the ‘hermeneutic problem’ was specifically created by the alienation of exegesis and understanding from ‘application’, the importance of which was discovered only by Romantic philosophy and best redressed with the help of a language-obsessed philosophy of being. But as was the case for Dilthey, the crucial moment in the development of hermeneutics remained the discovery of the role of language in ‘meaning’, in the broadest sense, so that texts could only be understood in the grand context of a philosophy of life or, in Gadamerian terms, in the context of a philosophy that functioned as present interpretation.

The Qur'an : formative interpretation

Abstract: Contents: Introduction The beginnings of the Qura (TM)anic exegesis, Claude Gilliot The early development of Tafsir, Nabia Abbott Old Muslim opposition against interpretation of the Qura (TM)an, Harris Birkeland From Midrash to scripture: the sacrifice of Abraham in early Islamic tradition, Norman Calder Ibn a "Abbasa (TM)s Al-lughar fia (TM)l-Qura (TM)an, Andrew Rippin Ibn a "Abbasa (TM)s Gharib al-Qura (TM)an, Andrew Rippin Poetry citation as interpretive illustration in Qura (TM)an exegesis: Masaa (TM)il Nafia (TM) ibn al-Azraq, Issa J. Boullata The dogmatic religious stance of the grammarian Yahya ibn Ziyad al-Farra, Edmund Beck The treatment of qiraa (TM)at by the second and third century grammarians, Ramzi Baalbaki Maturidi and his Kitab Taa (TM)wilat al-Qura (TM)an, Manfred GA tz Religious influences on medieval Arabic philology, Lothar Kopf Majaz al-qura (TM)an: periphrastic exegesis, John Wansbrough The early meaning of majaz and the nature of Abu a "Ubaydaa (TM)s exegesis, Ella Almagor Muhkamat and mutashabihat (Koran 3/7): implications of a Koranic pair of terms in medieval exegesis, Leah Kinberg Some remarks on the Qisas al-Anbiyaa (TM) works in Arabic literature, JA!n Pauliny The term a "Khalifaa (TM) in early exegetical literature, Wadad al-Qadi a /Those are the high-flying cranesa , John Burton Index.