Seeing the Word: Refocusing New Testament Study (Studies in Theological Interpretation)
"What does one do about an academic discipline, 'New Testament  studies,' that has almost done away with its own object of study? Markus  Bockmuehl's diagnosis and prescription are at once judicious and mordantly  witty, properly academic and fun to read."--Robert W. Jenson, Center of  Theological Inquiry, retired"This is a timely prophetic plea for an  'evangelical catholic reading of the text (of Scripture) in our own time.'  Every page crackles with the tension created by dialogue between systematic  and historical-critical perspectives. The author's amazingly broad learning  is worn lightly in this accessible book, written with an elegance few can  match. At last, the circle has been squared: it is possible to take  Scripture as God's address to us without ducking awkward historical  questions."--Graham Stanton, Lady Margaret's Professor of Divinity,  University of Cambridge"Markus Bockmuehl'sSeeing the Wordis  essential reading for understanding the confusing state of play in  contemporary New Testament studies. His trenchant essays offer us fresh  ways of 'seeing' the relation between history and theology. Bockmuehl's  constructive proposals address a range of crucial issues: the NT's  formation of its implied readers, the significance of the Jewishness of the  NT, the reception history of the NT texts, and the hermeneutical  significance of the canon. In short, Bockmuehl sees the big picture and  offers a penetrating critical perspective on the unexamined assumptions of  the field in which he works. On every page he stimulates historically  informed reflection about the testimony of the earliest Christian  witnesses. Most of all, he calls us to contemplate anew the identity of  Jesus of Nazareth, the real-world, Jewish figure to whom these witnesses  testify."--Richard B. Hays, George Washington Ivey Professor of New  Testament, The Divinity School, Duke University