Did Jesus speak Greek? An affirmative answer to the question will no doubt challenge traditional presuppositions. The question relates directly to the historical preservation of Jesus's words and theology. Traditionally, the authenticity of Jesus's teaching has been linked to the recovery of the original Aramaic that presumably underlies the Gospels. The Aramaic Hypothesis infers that the Gospels represent theological expansions, religious propaganda, or blatant distortions of Jesus's teachings. Consequently, uncovering the original Aramaic of Jesus's teachings will separate the historical Jesus from the mythical personality. G. Scott Gleaves, in Did Jesus Speak Greek?, contends that the Aramaic Hypothesis is inadequate as an exclusive criterion of historical Jesus studies and does not aptly take into consideration the multilingual culture of first-century Palestine. Evidence from archaeological, literary, and biblical data demonstrates Greek linguistic dominance in Roman Palestine during the first century CE. Such preponderance of evidence leads not only to the conclusion that Jesus and his disciples spoke Greek but also to the recognition that the Greek New Testament generally and the Gospel of Matthew in particular were original compositions and not translations of underlying Aramaic sources.

Studies in the Greek New Testament: Theory and Practice is a collection of essays illustrating the relevance of Greek for understanding the New Testament. The essays, combining theory and practice, grow out of the author's abiding concern for the study of Greek utilizing the best insights of modern linguistics and biblical exegesis. The first part of the volume, devoted to theory, concentrates on fundamental linguistic questions. Although grammar is emphasized in these essays, including the topic of verbal aspect, lexicography is also discussed. The second part of the volume, devoted to practice, contains essays on crucial passages such as Matthew 16:19, Luke 18:35 and its parallels, Mark 15:2 and the language of Jesus, the speeches in Acts, Romans 5, Galatians 3:28-29, and 1 Timothy 2:15. In these chapters, the author defends provocative positions by utilizing close study of the Greek text.

A thorough grounding available in the various disciplines of New Testament study, this is a valuable tool for students, scholars and other serious readers of the earliest Christian writings. Together with an ample, up-to-date survey of scholarship on each topic, the volume gives a reliable, in depth presentation of the history of New Testament interpretation, the canon of the New Testament, text criticism and the history of the text, the language of the New Testament, the historical and literary context of the NT writings and the various methods and approaches in modern study.