Reformed Churchmen

We are Confessional Calvinists and a Prayer Book Church-people. In 2012, we remembered the 350th anniversary of the 1662 Book of Common Prayer; also, we remembered the 450th anniversary of John Jewel's sober, scholarly, and Reformed "An Apology of the Church of England." In 2013, we remembered the publication of the "Heidelberg Catechism" and the influence of Reformed theologians in England, including Heinrich Bullinger's Decades. For 2014: Tyndale's NT translation. For 2015, John Roger, Rowland Taylor and Bishop John Hooper's martyrdom, burned at the stakes. Books of the month. December 2014: Alan Jacob's "Book of Common Prayer" at: http://www.amazon.com/Book-Common-Prayer-Biography-Religious/dp/0691154813/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1417814005&sr=8-1&keywords=jacobs+book+of+common+prayer. January 2015: A.F. Pollard's "Thomas Cranmer and the English Reformation: 1489-1556" at: http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Cranmer-English-Reformation-1489-1556/dp/1592448658/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1420055574&sr=8-1&keywords=A.F.+Pollard+Cranmer. February 2015: Jaspar Ridley's "Thomas Cranmer" at: http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Cranmer-Jasper-Ridley/dp/0198212879/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1422892154&sr=8-1&keywords=jasper+ridley+cranmer&pebp=1422892151110&peasin=198212879

Friday, November 1, 2013

Mr. (Rev. Dr. Prof.) Merrill Tenney's "New Testament Times:" Sources

Tenney, Merrill C.  New Testament Times.  Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1978.  It is available at: http://www.amazon.com/New-Testament-Survey-Merrill-Tenney/dp/0802836119/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1376874864&sr=8-1&keywords=merrill+c.+tenney
 
Chapter 1—Sources
A lovely quote, “History is the autobiography of humanity written by the learned and ignorant alike” (1).  Monuments, clay tablets, coins, architectural, papyri, scrolls, manuscripts, caves, monasteries and more tell stories that the historian studies.
In one sense, the canonical period governs the questions of New Testament inquiry, from Herod the Great (4 B.C.) to the closure of John’s life and Revelation (assuming 90 A.D.).
But, a wider period also comes to view covering the second Jewish commonwealth of the Maccabean Revolt (175 A.D.) to the age of Emperor Hadrian (117—138 A.D.).  Or, even antecedents to 175 A.D. and period following 138 A.D.  With Mr. Ernst Hengstenberg, we are reminded that “to be” a theologian (including the New Testament), one must first be an Old Testament theologian.  Want to specialize in the NT?  Get your Ph.D. in the OT first. Then, get a NT Ph.D. Or, with Mr. Brevard Childs, being rooted in Old Testament studies provides a check against using the OT as a foil for NT work alone. More could be said.
Some sources.
Jewish Sources for NT studies:  Flavius Josephus
·        Born 37-38 A.D. in Jerusalem. Well-to-do family. Educated in rabbinic learning.  He was familiar with the schools, principles and leaders from the parties of the Pharisees, Sadducees, and Essenes. He was a Pharisee. He spent 3 years studying with a rabbinic hermit in Banias (we would add, a wonderful oasis with abundant and verdant greeneries just north of the Sea of Galilee)

·        He fought in the war against Rome in 66 A.D. He was committed to defending Jotapata Fortress, but it fell.

·        Ultimately, he foresaw the Roman victory.  He was brought before Vespasian and “predicted” the victory.  Being flattered, he took Josephus into his orbit. Vespasian took Josephus with him to Alexandria, Egypt.

·        He accompanied Titus, Vespasian’s son, to Jerusalem and aided in the negotiations with Jewish leaders.

·        He retired to Rome, was given a pension by Vespasian, a residence and Roman citizenship.  As such, inferably, he had the quiet life of a scholar.

·        He wrote The War of the Jews, consisting of 7 books, covering the rise of the Seleucid wingnut and Hellenizer, Antioches Epiphanes IV (called the “madman”) in 175 B.C. to the fall of Jerusalem in 70 A.D.

·        He wrote the Antiquities of the Jews, a recitation of Jewish history back to the earliest of times.  He also cites 18 authors whose texts are lost.

·        Josephus, Flavius.  Josephus: The Complete Works.  Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2003. 1200 pages. http://www.amazon.com/Josephus-The-Complete-Works/dp/0785250506/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1383349242&sr=8-1&keywords=josephus+the+complete+works

Jewish Sources for NT studies:  1 & 2 Maccabees
·        1 Maccabees was used by Josephus.  It was originally written in Hebrew and was tightly translated to Greek (no small feat for that leap)

·        2 Maccabees was predicated on an earlier work by Jason, a Cyrenian

·        We’ll reserve further comments here 

Jewish Sources for NT studies:  Dead Sea Scrolls
·        The story is quickly told, for the present purposes, to wit, a Bedouin boy’s goat crawls in cave, he tosses a stone into the cave and hears something breaking, ambles into the cave, discovers documents, and a long story ensues of their transmission until their final home under Israel’s custody

·        This prompted further archaeological inquiries and more caves and a settlement (with more finds) result

·        We’re forego further comments, reserved for other places
Greek sources for NT studies:
·        Polybius, c. 203—103 B.C. He was a Greek who moved to Rome in 167 B.C. Amazon offers this:  Written in the 2nd century by the Greek historian Polybius, The Histories is a multi-volume work detailing many of the events, people, and ideas of the Hellenistic Period. While his focus is the space of time in which ancient Rome became a world power from 220 to 167 BC, Polybius also discusses his role as a 'pragmatic historian', a discourse on fate (called tyche), and the superiority of the mixed constitution. Though all forty volumes have not survived to the present day, the complete books extant today cover the affairs of all the important nations of the time, including Egypt, Greece, and Spain, as well as the first and second Punic Wars. Polybius speaks at length on the government of the Romans, citing it as the reason for Rome's success as a force of the world. Though it includes a couple of digressions concerning lesser issues of the time, "The Histories" has proven and continues to be a valuable text when studying the Hellenistic time period and manner of writing.” Polybius. The Complete Histories of Polybius. Digireads, 2009. 606 pages. http://www.amazon.com/Complete-Histories-Polybius/dp/1420934236/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1383352189&sr=1-1&keywords=polybius+complete

·        Diodorus of Sicily, died 21 B.C. He was a contemporary of Julius Ceasar and Augustus.  He wrote a survey of the beginning of mankind beginning with Egypt and Assyria to the conquest of Gaul by Julius Ceasar.  Diodorus of Sicily. Library of History. Boston: Harvard University Press, 1933. There are 12 volumes.  Here is one.  http://www.amazon.com/Diodorus-Siculus-Library-History-Classical/dp/0674993071/ref=sr_1_fkmr1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1383353134&sr=1-1-fkmr1&keywords=diodorus+of+sicily+complete+loeb+classical

·        Plutarch, b. 50—120 A.D. Plutach. Lives of Noble Grecians and Romans (Complete).  Benediction Classics, 2010. http://www.amazon.com/PLUTARCH-Grecians-Romans-Complete-Unabridged/dp/1849025797/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1383353438&sr=1-2&keywords=plutarch%27s+lives+complete Also, the Great Books of Encyclopedia Britannica is an excellent edition as well.

Roman sources for NT studies:
·        Strabo, 63 B.C.—21 B.C. His Geography, 17 books, survived.  His History, 47 books, has not survived. We have the Geography around here somewhere.

·        Timagenes of Alexandria, a Syrian, is referenced by Josephus

·        The Commentaries of Herod are lost

·        The Commentaries of Vespasian are lost; Josephus is aware of these two commentary sets

·        Justus of Tiberius, a Jew, living on the Sea of Galilee (about 9 o’clock, assuming 12 o’clock is due north, a lovely city to this day). He was a contemporary of Josephus, participated in the war, and felt that Josephus was a self-serving self-aggrandizer. He wrote two volumes: History of the Jewish War and Chronicles of the Jewish Kings from Moses to Agrippa.  Josephus knew of these works; we wonder if Eusebius was at Caesarea?

·        Cicero (106—43 B.C.).  Varied.  Also, well acquainted with history of Syria. We would recommend this excellent biography.  Everitt, Anthony. Cicero. New York: Random House, 2003. From Publishers Weekly: “Using Cicero's letters to his good friend Atticus, among other sources, Everitt recreates the fascinating world of political intrigue, sexual decadence and civil unrest of Republican Rome. Against this backdrop, he offers a lively chronicle of Cicero's life. Best known as Rome's finest orator and rhetorician, Cicero (103 -43 B.C.) situated himself at the center of Roman politics. By the time he was 30, Cicero became a Roman senator, and 10 years later he was consul. Opposing Julius Caesar and his attempt to form a new Roman government, Cicero remained a thorn in Caesar's side until the emperor's assassination. Cicero supported Pompey's attempts during Caesar's reign to bring Rome back to republicanism. Along the way, Cicero put down conspiracies, won acquittal for a man convicted of parricide, challenged the dictator Sulla with powerful rhetoric about the decadence of Sulla's regime and wrote philosophical treatises. Everitt deftly shows how Cicero used his oratorical skills to argue circles around his opponents. More important, Everitt portrays Cicero as a man born at the wrong time. While Cicero vainly tried to find better men to run government and better laws to keep them in order, Republican Rome was falling down around him, never to return to the glory of Cicero's youth. A first-rate complement to Elizabeth Rawson's Cicero or T.N. Mitchell's monumental two-volume biography, Everitt's first book is a brilliant study that captures Cicero's internal struggles and insecurities as well as his external political successes. Maps.” http://www.amazon.com/Cicero-Times-Romes-Greatest-Politician/dp/037575895X/ref=pd_sim_b_2

·                    Livy (59—1 7 A.D.) He wrote a complete history of Rome. 38 books are extant.  He is good on the Maccabean period.  Here’s 5 books. Livy. Early History of Rome, Bks. 1-5. Penguin Classics, 2002.  http://www.amazon.com/Livy-Early-History-Penguin-Classics/dp/0140448098/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1383350565&sr=8-1&keywords=titus+livy

·                    Tacitus (55—120 A.D.) His Annals cover Tiberius to Nero and his History covers Nero to Domitian. The Great Books, Encyclopedia Britannica has a lovely volume of both volumes.  Or, Tacitus. Complete Works of Tacitus. McGraw Hill, 1964. http://www.amazon.com/Complete-Works-Tacitus/dp/0075536390/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1383350189&sr=8-1&keywords=tacitus+complete

·                    Suetonius (69—121 A.D.) A painstaking scholar, friend of Pliny, secretary to Emperor Hadrian, fluent in both Greek and Hebrew, and with access to imperial archives.  Suetonius, Gaius. The Twelve Caesars (Complete).  FQBooks, 2010.  http://www.amazon.com/Lives-Twelve-Caesars-Complete/dp/B003YH9OSK/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1383351904&sr=1-4&keywords=suetonius+complete+lives+of+the+caesars

Apostolic Fathers: 70—180 A.D.
·        Clement of Rome/1 Clement

·        II Clement has a debated provenance

·        Shepherd of Hermas

·        Ignatius of Antioch, his 7 famous letters, and martyrdom in Rome

·        Epistle of Polycarp, martyred in 155 A.D., a Churchman who knew Ignatius and John the Apostle

·        Didache

·        Epistle of Barnabas

·        Justin Martyr, a Syrian-Greek-turned Christian

·        Irenaeus’ Against Heresies

·        We’ll deal with these elsewhere
Eusebius: A must-have and must-read for all Christian adult Churchmen and Churchwomen.  He does church history, had access to many records, and was scholarly.  He covers this up to Nicea, 325 A.D., and also write a rather flattering biography of Constantine the Great.  Eusebius of Caesarea. Ecclesiastical History, Complete and Unabridged. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1998. http://www.amazon.com/Eusebius-Ecclesiastical-History-Complete-Unabridged/dp/1565633717/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1383354382&sr=1-1&keywords=eusebius+ecclesiastical+history

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