Justice and Mercy in the Apocalypse of Peter: A New Translation and Analysis of the Purpose of the Text (original) (raw)
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2018
This thesis examines the primary purpose of the Apocalypse of Peter. While most scholars assume the intent of the text is to use its grotesque imagery of punishments in hell to serve as a warning to its readers against sinning, no thorough exegetical analysis of the purpose of the Apocalypse of Peter has yet been undertaken to verify this claim. This thesis is, therefore, the first sustained analysis of the primary purpose of the document. It begins by reviewing previous scholarship on the text and discussing terminological and methodological concerns. Chapter three then surveys ten ancient afterlife torment texts in order to demonstrate the diverse ways the genre was utilised and the importance of the context surrounding the hellish descriptions to the interpretation of these texts. Prior to an examination of the primary purpose of the Apocalypse of Peter, chapter four presents and discusses a new, composite translation of the text that is the first to compare all the available manuscripts on a verse-by-verse basis. Chapters five and six present the exegetical analysis of the purpose of the text first by looking at the context surrounding the tour of hell and then at the tour itself. In these chapters, it is argued that the primary purpose of the Apocalypse of Peter is to move its readers to have compassion on the wicked by integrating divine justice and mercy. The study concludes by examining the possible impact the proposed interpretation of the text may have on various readers.
Much of the history of scholarship on " hell " has been devoted to tracing genetic relationships between older texts and more recent ones, typically based upon generic elements or the specific features of hell's landscape. This paper suggests a new direction for classics and New Testament study, focusing instead on the rhetorical function of hell in antiquity. This paper argues that the ancient conventions of descriptive rhetoric were at work in the depictions of Hell that we find in the Jewish and early Christian apocalypses. It begins with a definition of these rhetorical devices by examining the Progymnasmata as well as Quintillian's work on rhetoric and discusses the role of the rhetoric of description in the overall Greek and Roman programs of paideia. Next, this paper demonstrates that these rhetorical devices were at work in various ancient depictions of Hades (with examples chosen from Greek and Latin authors such as Homer, Plato, Virgil, Lucian and Plutarch). Finally, this paper shows that this rhetorical technique was also at work in the early Christian apocalypses and concludes that apocalyptic authors, like the Greeks and Romans before them, used these rhetorical techniques to " emotionally move " their audiences toward " right behavior. "
2 Peter and the Apocalypse of Peter: Towards a New Perspective
2 Peter and the Apocalypse of Peter: Towards a New Perspective, 2019
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2019
Contributors include: Richard Bauckham, Jan Bremmer, Terrance Callan, Paul Foster, Jeremy Hultin, Tobias Nicklas, David Nienhuis, and Martin Ruf. Uploaded here is the preliminary matter and introductory chapter.
This work serves as a comprehensive and detailed socio-historical investigation into the nature of suffering in 1 Peter. While interpreters commonly portray the conflict situation addressed by the epistle as "unofficial" persecution consisting of discrimination and verbal abuse, the study demonstrates the inadequacy of this modern consensus by situating the letter against the backdrop of conflict management in first-century CE Asia Minor. Drawing on a wide range of historical evidence and on modern social-psychological perspectives, the book reconstructs the conflict situation of the Anatolian audience and offers important insights regarding the legal culpability of Christians following the Neronian persecution, the roles of local and provincial authorities in the judicial process, and the variegated conflict experiences of different socio-economic groups within the Christian communities.
The Eschatology of 1 Peter: Considering the Influence of Zechariah 9-14
2014
The Eschatology of 1 Peter: Considering the Influence of Zechariah 9-14 (Society for New Testament Studies Monograph Series) Kelly D. Liebengood The author of 1 Peter regards Christian suffering as a necessary feature of faithful allegiance to Jesus, which precedes the full restoration and vindication of God's people. Much previous research has explored only the cause and nature of suffering; Kelly D. Liebengood now addresses the need for an explanation for the source that has generated this particular understanding. If Jesus truly is God's redemptive agent, come to restore His people, how can Christian suffering be a necessary part of discipleship after his coming, death and resurrection, and what led the author of 1 Peter to such a startling conclusion? Liebengood analyzes the appropriation of shepherds, exodus, and fiery trials imagery and argues that the author of 1 Peter is dependent upon the eschatological programme of Zechariah 9-14 for his theology of Christian suffering. This book will interest those studying the New Testament, Petrine theology and early Christianity.