Invitation to the New Testament: First Things

Writing with his usual flair and reader-friendly style, renowned scholar, author, and lecturer Ben Witherington III offers a balanced approach to the New Testament in this faith-friendly introductory text. An ideal textbook for college survey courses, this volume is also captivating reading for seminary students and general readers.

FEATURES

* Numerous dynamic color photos keep students engaged

* Maps and charts provide visual overviews at a glance

* Marginal definitions bring students up to speed on new concepts

* Chapter-ending study questions review key ideas and encourage reflection

* First-century quotations expose students to the world of the New Testament

* "A Closer Look" boxes cover more advanced topics

Ben Witherington III is Amos Professor of the New Testament for Doctoral Studies at Asbury Theological Seminary and also serves on the doctoral faculty at St. Andrews University in Scotland. One of the world's top evangelical scholars, he has written more than fifty books and is also a popular lecturer. Along with many interviews on radio networks across the country, he has been seen on the History Channel, NBC, ABC, CBS, CNN, the BBC, The Discovery Channel, A&E, and the PAX Network.

Foreword
Acknowledgments
The Plan of this Book
PART I. BACKGROUND AND FOREGROUND
Chapter 1. The Texture of the Text of the New Testament
The Material Used
Why a Continuous Flow of Letters?
The Oral and Rhetorical World of the New Testament
Implications of What We Have Learned
Chapter 2. The Literature of the New Testament
What Are the Gospels (and Acts)?
What about the "Letters" of the New Testament?
In the End, Apocalypse
What Is the Story the New Testament Seeks to Tell?
What Sort of History Is This?
Implications
Chapter 3. Jesus of Nazareth in His Early Jewish Setting
Did Jesus Even Exist?
What Manner of Man Was He?
What Is a Miracle?
Were There "Lost Christianities"?
Chapter 4. First Century Family Values
Greece and Rome Will Not Leave Us Alone
Social History and Ordinary Life
Implications
PART II. THE GOSPELS AND ACTS
Chapter 5. The Earliest Good News--Mark's Gospel
Who Was Mark, and When Did He Write?
How Is Mark's Gospel Arranged?
Brief Contents
The Presentation of and Reflection on Christ in Mark
Marking Time
The Kingdom Comes with Teaching and Healing
A Closer Look: Jesus' Wisdom Teachings--Parables, Aphorisms, Riddles
The Dramatic, Surprise Ending of Mark's Gospel
Implications
Chapter 6. The MOST POPULAR GOSPEL--MATTHEW
Describing a Scribe
The Audience, Date, and Character of Matthew's Gospel
Matthew's Special Contributions to the Story of Jesus
The Sermon on the Mount
The Peter Principle
The Grand Finale
Implications
Chapter 7. Luke the Historian's Two-Volume Work--Luke--Acts
Luke's Hellenistic, Yet Jewish, Historical Approach to Jesus and "the Way"
Who Was Theophilus?
Who Was Luke?
The Logical and Theological Structuring of Luke--Acts
The Gospel of the Holy Spirit
Luke's Views of Jesus
Synopsis of the Content of Luke--Acts
Implications
Chapter 8. The Last Word on Jesus--The Beloved Disciple's Testimony in the Gospel of John
First Things
The Theological Structure of the Fourth Gospel
A Closer Look: The I Am Sayings
In Passing--Meaningful Asides in the Gospel of John
A Glimpse of Glory--Special Moments in the Gospel of John with Nicodemus, the Samaritan Woman, Mary Magdalene, and Peter
Synopsis of Contents
Implications
PART III. PAUL AND HIS RHETORICAL LETTERS
Chapter 9. Paul--Outlines of the Life and Letters of the Apostle
The Trinity of Paul's Identity
Paul the Multilingual, Multicultural Apostle
Rhetoric in the Greco-Roman World
Paul's Rhetorical Letters
Paul's Narrative Thought World
Five Stories that Shook and Shaped Paul's World and Worldview
Implications
Chapter 10. Paul the Letter Writer Part One: The Earlier Letters
Paul's First Salvo--Galatians
Synopsis of Contents
1 and 2 Thessalonians
Synopsis of Contents
Implications
Chapter 11. Paul the Letter Writer Part Two: The Capital Pauline Epistles
1 and 2 Corinthians
Synopsis of Contents
A Closer Look: Paul, Sex, and Women
Synopsis of Contents
Romans--The Righteousness of God and the Setting Right of Human Beings
Synopsis of Contents
Implications
Chapter 12. Paul the Letter Writer Part Three: The Captivity Epistles
Synopsis of Colossians and Ephesians
Colossians 3:18-4:1/Ephesians 5:21-6/9--The Household Codes
Synopsis of Contents
Philemon
Philippians
Implications
Chapter 13. Paul the Letter Writer Part Four: The Pastoral Epistles and the Problem of
Pseudonymous Letters
Why the Authorship Issue Matters
The Pastoral Epistles--What Sort of Rhetoric Is This?
Primary Argument about False Teachers
Secondary Argument about False Teachers
Outlines and Synopses of Contents of the Pastorals
Titus
1 Timothy
2 Timothy
Implications
PART IV. LETTERS AND HOMILIES FOR JEWISH CHRISTIA NS
Chapter 14. The Sermon of James the Just--Jesus' Brother
General Epistles?
James--A Wisdom Sermon in Encyclical Form
The Language, Wisdom, and Rhetorical Style of James
The Authorship and Provenance Question
What Kind of Document Is James?
Synopsis of Contents
Implications
Chapter 15. The Other Brother and his Eschatological Thinking--Jude
Jude--The Man
Jude the Book
Jude's Audience
Synopsis of Contents
Implications
Chapter 16. The Suffering Servant--1 Peter
The Social World of Early Christianity
The Authorship, Audience, and Social Milieu of 1 Peter
The Rhetorical Outline of 1 Peter
Synopsis of Contents
Implications
Chapter 17. The Sermon of the Famous Anonymous Preacher--Hebrews
The Authorship, Audience, and Provenance of Hebrews
The Rhetoric of Hebrews
Core Samplings
Implications
Chapter 18. A Beloved Sermon and Two Elderly Letters--1-3 John
The Authorship Issues
The Social Context of the Johannine Epistles
The Date and Provenance of the Johannine Epistles
The Rhetoric of the Johannine Epistles
The Rhetorical Structure of 1 John
The Rhetorical Structure of 2 John
The Rhetorical Structure of 3 John
Core Samples--1 John 4
Implications
PART V. IN THE END--APOCALYPSE--AND THEREAFTER
Chapter 19. Picking up the Pieces, Forming up the Canon-2 Peter
Preliminary Considerations
The Mystery That Is 2 Peter
Putting Together the Pieces
The Rhetoric of 2 Peter
Core Samplings--2 Peter 1.12-21
Implications
Chapter 19. APOCALYPSE LATER--THE BOOK OF REVELATION
Who, What, When, Where, and Why?
The Particularity of Revelation
The Rhetoric and Resources of Revelation
Revelation in Its Social Setting in Western Asia Minor
The Christology of Revelation
The Genre of Revelation
Core Samplings: Revelation
Implications
Chapter 20. The Making of the New Testament--Did the Canon Misfire?
Canon Consciousness and Scripture Consciousness
The Rise of New Testament Scripture and Canon Consciousness
The Organizing of Orthodoxy and Orthopraxy
In the End
Implications
Appendix A. Right on Q? Are the Synoptics a Problem?
Appendix B. Epistolary Pseudepigrapha and Intellectual Property in Antiquity--Framing the Discussion
Key Terms
Index