Review of A Cloud of Witnesses: The Theology of Hebrews in its Ancient Contexts (ed. R. Bauckham, D. Driver, T. Hart, and N. MacDonald; LNTS 387; London: T&T Clark, 2008), in Review of Biblical Literature (August 22, 2009) (original) (raw)
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Abstract
The so-called "Epistle to the Hebrews" is presently enjoying an unprecedented level of critical attention, as attested by the steady flow of articles and monographs that have appeared in the past few years. This collection of sixteen essays represents a positive contribution to this influx of studies.
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The so-called “Epistle to the Hebrews” is presently enjoying an unprecedented level of critical attention, as attested by the steady flow of articles and monographs that have appeared in the past few years. This collection of sixteen essays represents a positive contribution to this influx of studies. Originally presented at a conference on Hebrews and Christian Theology, held in the University of St. Andrews in July 2006, these essays cover a variety of topics, including cosmology, structure, the person and work of Jesus, and the relation of Hebrews to the Old Testament, Second Temple Judaism, the Roman Empire, and early Christianity.
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The present volume contains a collection of fourteen essays applying the latest and neglected methods and offering new and innovative insights into the interpretation of the New Testament book To the Hebrews. The excitingly diverse contributions, which stem from an intriguing international group of senior and younger Hebrews, New Testament, and Old Testament scholars, are presented in three parts: Part One focuses on cultic language, concepts, and practice in Hebrews; Part Two on sociology, ethics, and rhetoric in Hebrews; and Part Three on textual-historical, comparative, and intertextual approaches to Hebrews. As the first ever compilation of essays on Hebrews by a range of authors, this volume presents an important contribution to the field of New Testament studies. It will particularly appeal to students, teachers, and scholars interested in a variety of critical perspectives on Hebrews and on the New Testament’s third great theologian next to Paul and John. Moreover, the treatment of hermeneutical, cultic, sociological, and comparative matters in the context of biblical, Greco-Roman, and rabbinic literature will make this collection valuable to an even broader readership.
The Message and Argument of Hebrews
Bible study takes careful reading, observation, ability to follow an author's thinking in a given text. Our purpose with the biblical text before us is to discover not only the author's message and intent but also God's message. God speaks through His inspired human agency. This article provides an approach to any book of the Bible for delineating the author's message, intent, and application. Our purpose is to discover all of these. While this article focuses on the Letter to the Hebrews, its approach can apply to any one of the 66 books of the Bible or any literary work. This article highlights a general approach, thereby not delving into detailed hermeneutical principles. Creative Commons License This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Scholars of Hebrews have repeatedly echoed the almost proverbial saying that the book appears to its reader as a "Melchizedekian being without genealogy". For such scholars the aphorism identified prominent traits of Hebrews, its enigma, its otherness, its marginality. Although Franz Overbeck might unintentionally have stimulated such correlations, they do not represent what his dictum originally meant. Writing during the high noon of historicism in 1880, Overbeck lamented a lack of historical context, one that he had deduced on the basis of flawed presuppositions of the ideological frameworks prevalent of his time. His assertion made an impact, and consequently Hebrews was not only "othered" within New Testament scholarship, its context was neglected and by some, even judged as irrelevant altogether. Understandably, the neglect created a deficit keenly felt by more recent scholarship, which has developed a particular interest in Hebrews’ contexts. Hebrews in Contexts, edited by Gabriella Gelardini and Harold W. Attridge, is an expression of this interest. It gathers authors who explore extensively on Hebrews’ relations to other early traditions and texts (Jewish, Hellenistic, and Roman) in order to map Hebrews’ historical, cultural, and religious identity in greater, and perhaps surprising detail. Biographical note Gabriella Gelardini is Associate Professor of New Testament (Privatdozentin) at the Theological Faculty of the University of Basel. Apart from numerous lexicon articles, essays, and short entries on Hebrews, her publications on the Epistle include, "Verhärtet eure Herzen nicht": Der Hebräer, eine Synagogenhomilie zu Tischa be-Aw (Brill, 2007) and the edited volume Hebrews: Contemporary Methods—New Insights (Brill, 2005; SBL, 2008). Harold W. Attridge is the Sterling Professor of Divinity at Yale University Divinity School. He is the author of a commentary on Hebrews (Hermeneia, 1989) and numerous essays on the Epistle. Readership In accordance with the concept of this book its authors include not only experts in New Testament scholarship but also of specialists in Hebrew Bible, Second Temple Judaism, Talmud, and Classics. Accordingly, this volume will be of interest not only for students of Hebrews and the New Testament but also for colleagues engaged in those other subject areas.
A Summary Of Extra-Biblical Traditions Found In The Epistle To The Hebrews
2022
Whether reading the Masoretic Text (MT), the Septuagint (LXX), the Samaritan Pentateuch (SP), the New Testament (NT), the works of Josephus, or the documents found among the Qumran Community Dead Sea Scrolls (DSS), it becomes clear that there were differing traditions, and opinions of the stories related in the Hebrew Old Testament/Covenant (OT). A clear amalgamation of the various traditions can be seen when comparing the NT Epistle to the Hebrews (Hebrews) with the referenced events accounted in the MT and LXX. To what extent the author (or authors) of the epistle to the Hebrews used traditions outside of the MT and LXX is unclear but this document attempts to identify some shared traditions between the NT Epistle to the Hebrews and the Qumran community as well as other sources/traditions the author was likely to have referenced or had a shared tradition with while writing the epistle.
The Contribution of Hebrews to New Testament Christology
This essay attempts an exegesis of some of the key Christological texts in the Epistle to the Hebrews in order to sketch the author’s Christology. The challenging introductory questions relating to the Epistle’s composition are largely avoided; the exegetical method instead focuses on context, grammar and syntax, and intertextuality. Competing scholarly viewpoints are presented and weighed. Particular emphasis is placed on the exordium (Hebrews 1:1-4), the catena of scriptural quotations (Hebrews 1:5-14), the discussion of Christ’s humanity (Hebrews 2:6-18), the comparison of Christ with Moses (Hebrews 3:1-6), and the enigmatic comparison of Christ with Melchizedek (Hebrews 7). Other Christologically significant texts discussed more briefly include Hebrews 4:15-16, Hebrews 5:7-9, Hebrews 9:15-16, Hebrews 10:5-10, and Hebrews 13:8. The conclusion drawn from the study is that the author of Hebrews regarded Jesus as the pre-existent, divine Son of God who became incarnate to deal with sin and was exalted by God for his faithfulness unto death. By its dual emphasis on Christ’s divinity and humanity, Hebrews provides the raw materials for later Chalcedonian orthodoxy, although it does not develop these concepts or attempt to resolve the tension between them.
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The Letter to the Hebrews is one of the most extraordinary texts in the New Testament. This anonymous sermon offers what is perhaps the highest Christology, the most comprehensive soteriology and realized eschatology, the clearest view of the costs and benefits of the Christian life, the deepest immersion in the Old Testament, as well as the most passionate exhortation and refined literary-rhetorical skills in the NT canon. After suffering years of neglect, Hebrews has recently attracted an abundance of critical attention, and keeping abreast of this growing corpus is becoming increasingly difficult. Though representing a welcome development, this rapid growth is leading to the neglect of older critical works, despite their foundational role. Contributing to this neglect is the fact that many of these works are in out-of-print books, discontinued journals, and other hard to find sources. This collection attempts to remedy both situations, rapid growth and regrettable neglect, by selectively gathering into one handy volume some of the very best English language essays on Hebrews from the last sixty years. In this volume of critical readings, edited by Scott D. Mackie, the essays are organized thematically, addressing such topics as theology, Christology, pneumatology, eschatology, authorship, audience, structure, Greco-Roman rhetoric, the OT, Hebrews’ relationship with contemporaneous Judaism, and soteriology. Each section is prefaced by an introduction and summary of the particular theme in Hebrews. At the end of each section is an annotated bibliography to point researchers towards further readings in these key themes.
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