Thursday, February 29, 2024
Saturday, February 17, 2024
Loader Reviews Urga, Intercession of Jesus in Hebrews
William R. G. Loader reviews Abeneazer G. Urga, Intercession of Jesus in Hebrews: The Background and Nature of Jesus’ Heavenly Intercession in the Epistle to the Hebrews in RBL.
New Irish Theological Quarterly Article
Moore, Nicholas J. “Supersessionism and the Cult Attitude of Stephen and Hebrews.” Irish Theological Quarterly (2024): 1–18.
Abstract:"In the face of continued debates about Christian supersessionism with regard to Judaism, this article revisits two texts which have been thought to display the harshest anti-temple attitudes in the New Testament: Stephen’s speech in Acts 7, and the Letter to the Hebrews. Many scholars believe these two texts are connected, and a perceived anti-cultic attitude forms one of the key alleged similarities between the two. The article first examines shared lexical and conceptual points between the two texts, affirming their proximity. It then examines each text’s cult attitude in turn. Stephen portrays the temple as divinely given yet always subordinate to God’s heavenly presence. Hebrews frames deficiencies in the Levitical cultus as divinely intended in light of the heavenly tabernacle. These texts therefore do not condemn but instead relativize Israel’s earthly sanctuary/ies, in keeping with themes in Israel’s Scriptures, and thus should not be regarded as supsersessionist."
New NTS Article
Cole, M. I. “‘Somewhere Someone Testified’: TheHermeneutical Function of Indefinite Citation Formulae in the Epistle to theHebrews.” New Testament Studies 70.1 (2024): 99–110.
Abstract:"The author to the Hebrews makes the seemingly strange choice to introduce two quotations from the LXX with indefinite markers (Heb 2.6; 4.4). While some commentators do not consider these introductions, others have argued that they function either rhetorically to engage the audience or theologically to highlight the divine speaker. This article argues that a hermeneutical function better explains the author's choices: the author uses the indefiniteness to guide his audience in how to interpret each quoted passage. The author uses the indefinite marker of place (που) to remove both Gen 2.2 and Ps 8.5–7 LXX from their salvation-historical context; this results in the rest of God (Heb 3–4) and the role of humanity within creation (Heb 2) applying equally to the present and the coming ages. He pairs this with the indefinite marker of person (τις) in his introduction to Ps 8 to indicate that the audience should not interpret it prosopologically as the speech of the Son to the Father; rather the Psalm testifies to the role of humanity within the present and the coming worlds, a role which the Son incarnate fulfils. This hermeneutical explanation aligns with other instances of indefinite citation markers in Second Temple Judaism, most notably in Philo. This argument, therefore, both adds depth to the characterisation of the author as a careful reader of Scripture and brings out the intended meaning and function of Ps 8 and Gen 2 in the discourse of Hebrews more clearly."
Wednesday, February 7, 2024
Two New Novum Testamentum Articles
Jihye Lee. "Jesus’s Solidarity with Human Mortality and Perfection of Sonship in the Epistle to the Hebrews." Novum Testamentum 66.1 (2024): 95–111.
Matthew C. Easter. "'Profane Like Esau': Sexual Immorality, Bitterness, and Community Abandonment in Hebrews 12:14–17." Novum Testamentum 66.1 (2024): 112–25.
Saturday, January 20, 2024
New Resources Added
I have added a link to the following resource under Theses & Dissertation:
Tomesch, Harald. "Genre and Outline: The Key to the Literary Structure of Hebrews." Th.D. diss., Concordia Seminary, 1996.
I have added a link to the following resource under Books (Complete):
Bligh, John. Chiastic Analysis
of the Epistle to the Hebrews. 1966.
Sunday, January 7, 2024
Cortez Reviews Lee
A link to the following review with RBL has been added to the Book Reviews page:
Lee, Jihye. A Jewish Apocalyptic Framework of Eschatology in the Epistle to the Hebrews: Protology and Eschatology as Background. Library of New Testament Studies 662. Review by Félix H. Cortez.
Wednesday, January 3, 2024
The Obedience of Sonship
Timothy J. Bertolet. The Obedience of Sonship: Adamic Obedience and the Heavenly Ascension in Hebrews. Fontes Press.
Description:
"The ascension of Jesus in the book of Hebrews remains an understudied
theme in the scholarly literature on Hebrews. This study explores the
relationship between the Sonship of Christ and his ascension in the book
of Hebrews. Wading into recent debates by scholars over the nature
Hebrews’ Christology, this study argues that Hebrews 1 and 2 show the
Son is both divine and human. As divine, the Son radiates the glory of
God, and that glory is put on display in the ascension. Equally, as the
incarnate human, the Son fulfills the telos of humanity in his
ascension where he is “crowned with glory and honor” and becomes the
first human to participate in the age to come, having effected this
transition of the ages. He ascends as the glorified eschatological man
as a forerunner for the “sons of glory.” This aspect of Hebrews’
presentation of the Son can rightly be called a “Second-Adam
Christology.” The Son fulfills the human vocation through his cries with
loud tears in an exercise of Adamic-Davidic obedience and faithfulness.
The Son’s trust in the Father through his suffering qualifies him to
receive the eschatological glory of Adam and ascend up to the divine
throne. Thus, for Hebrews, the Son’s ascension both confirms the Son’s
fulfillment of humanity’s destiny and reveals the Son’s divine identity."
Thursday, December 14, 2023
Cortez Reviews So Great a Salvation
Félix Cortez reviews So Great A Salvation: A Dialogue on the Atonement in Hebrews, edited by Jon C. Laansma, George H. Guthrie, and Cynthia Long Westfall, in Review of Biblical Literature.
Thursday, November 23, 2023
Studies on the Letter to the Hebrews
Wolfgang Kraus. Studium zum Hebräerbrief. Biblische Zeitschrift - Supplements 6. Leiden: Brill, 2023.
Translation of the description:
"This volume deals with studies on various theological and literary questions of the letter to the Hebrews, including intention and objective, addressees, ecclesiology, covenant concept, Jesus as a “mediator”, meaning of Jesus' death, speech about God, Christology, Hebrews 13, reception of scripture, Church and Israel. The Epistle to the Hebrews enjoys lively interest in recent research. The author of it is increasingly seen as the third great theologian of the New Testament, alongside Paul and John. Many detailed questions are still unresolved. The studies were created over the last 15 years as preparatory work for a commentary on Hebrews. They address important questions in the interpretation of Hebrews and attempt to advance research one step further."
Wednesday, November 22, 2023
Divine Action in Hebrews
Cockerill, Gareth Lee, Craig Bartholomew, and Benjamin T. Quinn, eds. Divine Action in Hebrews and the Ongoing Priesthood of Jesus. Zondervan Academic, 2023.
Description:
"Recent years have seen renewed interest in divine action, but much of the literature tends to focus on the science-theology discussion. Resulting from multi-year work of the Scripture and Doctrine Seminar, part of KLC's Scripture Collective, this book attends to the portrayal of divine action in one major biblical text, namely Hebrews. In the New Testament, Hebrews is on par with Romans in terms of importance but has too often been overlooked. Contributors to this volume explore the many different ways in which divine action is foregrounded and portrayed in Hebrews. As its name indicates, Hebrews overflows with Old Testament intertextuality, which also makes it a fertile ground for analysis of divine action stretching back into the Old Testament and opening out into different parts of the NT. The essays in this volume:
- rigorously work the interface of theology and exegesis, all related to Hebrews;
- offer an overview of the current state of discussion of divine action and the importance of exploring divine action in specific biblical texts, with special reference to William Abraham's recent 4 volume work with OUP;
- provide an overview of the reception history of Hebrews in theologies of divine action;
- explore how this has this played out in historical theology and what a retrieval of Hebrews for a theology of divine action might mean today;
- explore the relationship between the doctrine of God and divine action in Hebrews, including an engagement with classical theism;
- provocatively explore divine action in the OT, creation, and eschatology in Hebrews;
- explore the major theme in Hebrews of divine action through the ongoing priesthood of Jesus as portrayed in Hebrews;
- relate this all to preaching Hebrews today and to spiritual formation.
The book's conclusion reflects on the primary action of God speaking in Hebrews."
New Pillar Commentary on Hebrews
Sigurd Grindheim. The Letter to the Hebrews. Pillar New Testament Commentary. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2023.
"What does the Letter to the Hebrews have to say to Christians today?
A compelling exhortation to hold true to the faith in the face of adversity. A sermon rife with iconic imagery and Old Testament allusions. A signal work of theology in the New Testament.
Above all, the Letter to the Hebrews proclaims the high priesthood of Jesus Christ. But the book’s textual complexity and long history of interpretation can be overwhelming. In this new Pillar commentary, Sigurd Grindheim illuminates the Letter to the Hebrews, paying careful attention to linguistic features and historical context—all while centering its relevance to modern readers.
Grindheim clearly and comprehensively addresses major issues about the text, including authorship, date, canonicity, formal qualities, and major themes. Following his thorough introduction, he explains each line of the text and its significance for believers today. Grindheim’s commentary offers pastors, students, and scholars the clarity and fresh insights they want in their scriptural study."
Wednesday, November 1, 2023
Articles and Essays Page Taken Down
Blogger has taken down my Articles and Essays page making it unavailable for viewing. Someone flagged it to Blogger for some reason, but by doing so that person made the content unavailable for viewing. The page consists merely of links to other pages. If you have an issue with anything on this blog, please bring it to my attention first. I don't know if I will be able to fix the issue Blogger is pointing out because the email was not very specific. It has to do with Malware but I have hundreds of links on the page, so I do not know if I can identify the problem and recover the page.
Update: Blogger did restore the page, but I am requesting that if you find a bad link on this page or some other problem, please let me know.
Tuesday, October 24, 2023
New Tyndale Article on Hebrews
New article:
Stevens, Daniel. “Changes: Literary and Theological Consideration of Two Variation Units in Hebrews 1:8b.” Tyndale Bulletin 74 (2023): 65–86.
Thursday, October 5, 2023
Two New Novum Testamentum Articles on Hebrews
Grindheim, Sigurd. “Direct Dependence on Philo in the Epistle to the Hebrews.” Novum Testamentum 65.4 (2023): 517–43.