A Short History of the Interpretation of the Bible

A Short History of the Interpretation of the Bible PDF

Author: Robert McQueen Grant

Publisher: Augsburg Fortress Publishing

Published: 1984

Total Pages: 236

ISBN-13:

DOWNLOAD EBOOK →

"The book represents the kind of collaboration that one wishes could go on all the time. Here, in other words, the interdependence of two specializations (biblical and philsophical theology) is made explicit in both theory and in reflection on scriptures."? Commonweal"This book was originally published about twenty years ago and then unfortunately went out of print. It was such a remarkable helpful little book that many people clamored for its reappearance. Finally, Fortress Press has responded by bringing out Grant's original study on the history of biblical exegesis in the church from the first century to the present with a theoretical afterword written by the Roman Catholic theologian David Tracy. The result is an immensely useful and readable study of both the history and hermeneutics of Bible interpretation."? The Spire, The Divinity School, Vanderbilt University

Sacred Scripture

Sacred Scripture PDF

Author: Richard N. Soulen

Publisher: Westminster John Knox Press

Published: 2010-02-01

Total Pages: 208

ISBN-13: 1611641799

DOWNLOAD EBOOK →

How did the Bible's sixty-six books become sacred Scripture? How have they been understood and interpreted over the last two thousand years? What was it that led to our acceptance of the Bible as the true word of God? For two millennia, Christians have accepted the importance of the Bible as sacred Scripture, and for as many years they have struggled to comprehend its meaning. Over the centuries the church has expressed the centrality of Scripture in numerous ways, and Christians have studied and interpreted the Bible in a wide variety of faithful approaches. Understanding that process is critical to our ability--and our willingness--to accept the Bible as sacred and true. To that end, Richard Soulen leads us through the history of how Christian understandings of the Bible have changed and developed throughout history.

'Behind' the Text: History and Biblical Interpretation

'Behind' the Text: History and Biblical Interpretation PDF

Author: Zondervan,

Publisher: Zondervan Academic

Published: 2011-04-19

Total Pages: 576

ISBN-13: 0310860946

DOWNLOAD EBOOK →

Christianity believes in a God who acts in history. The Bible tells us the story of God’s actions in Israel, culminating in the ministry of Jesus of Nazareth and the spreading of the gospel from Jerusalem to Rome. The issue of history is thus unavoidable when it comes to reading the Bible. Volume 4 of the Scripture and Hermeneutics Series looks at how history has dominated biblical studies under the guise of historical criticism. This book explores ways in which different views of history influence interpretation. It considers the implications of a theology of history for biblical exegesis, and in several case studies it relates these insights to particular texts. “Few topics are more central to the task of biblical interpretation than history, and few books open up the subject in so illuminating and thought-provoking a manner as this splendid collection of essays and responses.” Hugh Williamson, Regius Professor of Hebrew, University of Oxford, England “. . . breaks new ground in its interdisciplinary examination of the methodology, presuppositions, practices and purposes of biblical hermeneutics, with a special emphasis on the relation of faith and history.” Eleonore Stump, Robert J. Henle Professor of Philosophy, Saint Louis University, United States “This volume holds great promise for the full-fledged academic recovery of the Bible as Scripture. It embodies an unusual combination of world-class scholarship, historic Christian orthodoxy, bold challenges to conventional wisdom, and the launching of fresh new ideas.” Al Wolters, Professor of Religion and Theology, Redeemer University College, Ontario, Canada “The essays presented here respect the need and fruitfulness of a critical historiography while beginning the much-needed process of correcting the philosophical tenets underlying much modern and postmodern biblical research. The result is a book that mediates a faith understanding, both theoretical and practical, of how to read the Bible authentically as a Christian today.” Francis Martin, Chair, Catholic-Jewish Theological Studies, John Paul II Cultural Center, Washington, D.C. Not only is history central to the biblical story, but from a Christian perspective history revolves around Jesus Christ. All roads of human activity before Christ lead up to him, and all roads after Christ connect with him. A concern with history and God’s action in it is a central characteristic of the Bible. The Bible furnishes us with an account of God's interactions with people and with the nation of Israel that stretches down the timeline from creation to the early church. It tells us of real men, women, and children, real circumstances and events, real cultures, places, languages, and worldviews. And it shows us God at work in human affairs, revealing his character and heart through his activities. “Behind” the Text examines the correlation between history and the Bible. For the scholar, student, and informed reader of the Bible, this volume highlights the importance of history for biblical interpretation, and looks at how history has and should influence interpretation.

Interpretation of the Bible

Interpretation of the Bible PDF

Author: George Holley Gilbert

Publisher: Forgotten Books

Published: 2015-06-25

Total Pages: 326

ISBN-13: 9781330171950

DOWNLOAD EBOOK →

Excerpt from Interpretation of the Bible: A Short History This book surveys a great but neglected field. The greatness of the field is not easily overestimated, whether we regard its extent and complexity, or its importance. It stretches back through twenty centuries; it touches both the intellectual and the religious life of Jew and Christian on many sides; and it brings us into immediate contact with those processes which underlie all historic creeds and all our religious institutions. Coleridge has somewhere remarked that the history of a word is often more interesting and significant than the history of a campaign. That is most true, also, of the history of the interpretation of a word, and especially a word of the Scriptures. Out of their sound interpretation have come beneficial enfranchising influences, which have been promotive of the best civilization, while out of their misinterpretation has flowed the inspiration for the crudest wrongs in Christian history. But this wide field of the history of interpretation has been neglected. The English language has but one original work on the subject, and even that, with all its excellences, practically omits one of the most fundamental sections in the history of interpretation, viz., the interpretation of the Old Testament in the New. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

A History of the Bible

A History of the Bible PDF

Author: John Barton

Publisher: Penguin

Published: 2020-08-04

Total Pages: 642

ISBN-13: 0143111205

DOWNLOAD EBOOK →

A literary history of our most influential book of all time, by an Oxford scholar and Anglican priest In our culture, the Bible is monolithic: It is a collection of books that has been unchanged and unchallenged since the earliest days of the Christian church. The idea of the Bible as "Holy Scripture," a non-negotiable authority straight from God, has prevailed in Western society for some time. And while it provides a firm foundation for centuries of Christian teaching, it denies the depth, variety, and richness of this fascinating text. In A History of the Bible, John Barton argues that the Bible is not a prescription to a complete, fixed religious system, but rather a product of a long and intriguing process, which has inspired Judaism and Christianity, but still does not describe the whole of either religion. Barton shows how the Bible is indeed an important source of religious insight for Jews and Christians alike, yet argues that it must be read in its historical context--from its beginnings in myth and folklore to its many interpretations throughout the centuries. It is a book full of narratives, laws, proverbs, prophecies, poems, and letters, each with their own character and origin stories. Barton explains how and by whom these disparate pieces were written, how they were canonized (and which ones weren't), and how they were assembled, disseminated, and interpreted around the world--and, importantly, to what effect. Ultimately, A History of the Bible argues that a thorough understanding of the history and context of its writing encourages religious communities to move away from the Bible's literal wording--which is impossible to determine--and focus instead on the broader meanings of scripture.

A History of Biblical Interpretation, Volume 1

A History of Biblical Interpretation, Volume 1 PDF

Author: Alan J. Hauser

Publisher: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing

Published: 2003

Total Pages: 559

ISBN-13: 0802863957

DOWNLOAD EBOOK →

At first glance, it may seem strange that after more than two thousand years of biblical interpretation, there are still major disagreements among biblical scholars about what the Jewish and Christian Scriptures say and about how one is to read and understand them. Yet the range of interpretive approaches now available is the result both of the richness of the biblical texts themselves and of differences in the worldviews of the communities and individuals who have sought to make the Scriptures relevant to their own time and place. A History of Biblical Interpretation provides detailed and extensive studies of the interpretation of the Scriptures by Jewish and Christian writers throughout the ages. Written by internationally renowned scholars, this multivolume work comprehensively treats the many different methods of interpretation, the many important interpreters who have written in various eras, and the many key issues that have surfaced repeatedly over the long course of biblical interpretation. The first volume explores interpreters and their methods in the ancient period, from the very earliest stages to the time when the canons of Judaism and Christianity gained general acceptance. The second volume contains essays by fifteen noted scholars discussing major methods, movements, and interpreters in the Jewish and Christian communities from the beginning of the Middle Ages until the end of the sixteenth-century Reformation. The authors examine such themes as the variety of interpretive developments within Judaism during this period, the monumental work of Rashi and his followers, the achievements of the Carolingian era, and the later scholastic developments within the universities, beginning in the twelfth century. Included are bibliographical references for even deeper study. - Publisher.

A Brief History of Old Testament Criticism

A Brief History of Old Testament Criticism PDF

Author: Mark S. Gignilliat

Publisher: Zondervan Academic

Published: 2012-06-05

Total Pages: 250

ISBN-13: 0310589673

DOWNLOAD EBOOK →

Mark Gignilliat discusses critical theologians and their theories of Old Testament interpretation in this concise overview, providing a working knowledge of the historical foundation of contemporary discussions on Old Testament interpretation. Old Testament interpretation developed as theologians and scholars proposed critical theories over time. These figures contributed to a large, developing complex of ideas and trends that serves as the foundation of contemporary discussions on interpretation. Mark Gignilliat brings these figures and their theories together in A Brief History of Old Testament Criticism. His discussion is driven by influential thinkers such as Baruch Spinoza and the critical tradition, Johann Semler and historical criticism, Hermann Gunkel and romanticism, Gerhard von Rad and the tradition-historical approach, Brevard Childs and the canonical approach, and more. This concise overview is ideal for classroom use as it provides a working knowledge of the major critical interpreters of the Old Testament, their approach to the subject matter, and the philosophical background of their approaches. Further reading lists direct readers to additional resources on specific theologians and theories. This book will serve as a companion to the forthcoming textbook Believing Criticism by Richard Schultz.