The Significance Of Exemplars For The Interpretation Of The Letter Of James

In this book, Robert J. Foster explores James' use of his four characters from Jewish history and tradition (Abraham, Rahab, Job and Elijah) and considers their collective as well as individual functions in the composition. He concludes that each of the four exemplars was tested to the extreme (albeit in very different ways) yet remained wholly-committed to God. By reason of that commitment each exemplar became an outsider in both their cultural and historical contexts. 'James' urges his audience to emulate these exemplars in their less extreme tests of daily life by rejecting the values of the world and living according to the reinterpreted Torah of Jesus Christ.

"What was the function of the four characters from Jewish history and tradition in the Letter of James? Robert J. Foster analyses James' use of these characters and argues that despite each of them being tested to the extreme they all remained wholly-committed to God"--

Provides a section-by-section commentary on the New Testament book of James, featuring discussion of primary themes, individual verses, and problems of interpretation, and including information on authorship, date, and historical background.

Few New Testament books have been as con­troversial and misunderstood as the letter of James. Its place in the canon was contested by some early Christians, and the reformer Martin Luther called it an “epistle of straw.” The sometimes negative view of the letter among modern theologians, however, is not shared by ordinary believers. Well known and often quoted, James is concise, intensely practical, and filled with memorable metaphors and illustrations. As such, it has become one of the most popular New Testament books in the church. This highly original commentary on James by respected New Testament scholar Douglas Moo combines penetrat­ing scholarship with the simplicity of style and pastoral tone characteristic of James itself. After discussing such background issues as authorship, genre, purpose, structure, and theology, Moo provides a verse-by-verse exposition of the text that leads readers to the heart of James’s message—wholehearted commitment to Christ. In addition to expounding the meaning of James, Moo also takes care to provide practical insights for applying that meaning in the church today. At once scholarly and accessible, this vol­ume has become a standard commentary on James. The second edition is based upon the newest version of the NIV and incorporates the latest scholarship. It has been expanded, updated, and revised throughout.

The Epistle of James is a collection of essays that applies to the book of James linguistic methods of analysis that are based on the same theoretical framework, namely Systemic-Functional Linguistics. This volume is unique in that it provides a theoretically consistent and unified approach to a single New Testament book, which makes the whole volume useful for researchers and students of James. Each essay makes its own creative use of this linguistic perspective to engage important critical questions and to pave new ground for Jacobean scholarship based on linguistic analysis. Various topics in this volume include the textual structure and cohesion of the letter, intertextuality, rhetorical strategies, ideological struggle, interpersonal relations, and other topics related to the letter’s social context and language use.

This book surveys the current landscape of New Testament studies, offering readers a concise guide to contemporary discussions. Bringing together a diverse group of experts, it covers research on the most important issues in New Testament studies, including new discipline areas, making it an ideal supplemental textbook for a variety of courses on the New Testament. Michael Bird, David Capes, Greg Carey, Lynn Cohick, Dennis Edwards, Michael Gorman, and Abson Joseph are among the contributors.

James's epistle is usually remembered for being very practical and for inviting its readers to acts of mercy and compassion. And yet, the same letter also claims that it is not possible to love God and to love “the world.” In other words, James encourages his readers to develop two seemingly opposite attitudes at the same time: to reject the world and to be involved in it. Vincent Hirschi shows that James contains crucial insights on how the church can be at the same time a positive social force and a prophetic voice challenging the society she serves. Through careful exegesis and attention to details, he explores the relationships between the personal and communal dimensions of faith, on the interplay between development of character and social action, and proposes a detailed analysis of the role of the church in James's letter.

With the torrent of publications on the use of the Old Testament in the New Testament, the time is ripe for a dictionary dedicated to this incredibly rich yet diverse field. This companion volume to the well-received Commentary on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament (CNTUOT) brings together leading evangelical biblical scholars to explore and explain the many facets of how the New Testament writers appropriated the Old Testament. This definitive resource covers a range of interpretive topics and includes summary articles on each biblical book and numerous themes. It also unpacks concepts mentioned in the CNTUOT, demonstrates how the Old Testament uses the Old Testament, and addresses a wide range of biblical-theological, hermeneutical, and exegetical topics. This handy reference book is for all serious students of the Bible as they study how and why Old Testament texts reappear and are reappropriated throughout the Bible.