The relevance of the Targums (Aramaic translations of the Hebrew Bible) for the understanding of the New Testament has been a matter of dispute over the past three hundred years, principally by reason of the late date of the Targum manuscripts and the nature of the Aramaic. The debate has become more focused by reason of the Qumran finds of pre-Christian Aramaic documents (1947) and the identification of a complete text of the Palestinian Targum of the Pentateuch in the Vatican Library (Codex Neofiti, 1956). Martin McNamara traces the history of the debate down to our own day and the annotated translation of all the Targums into English. He studies the language situation (Aramaic and Greek) in New Testament Palestine and the interpretation of the Scriptures in the Targums, with concepts and language similar to the New Testament. Against this background relationships between the Targums and the New Testament are examined. A way forward is suggested by regarding the tell-like structure of the Targums (with layers from different ages) and a continuum running through for certain texts.

Updated ed. of: Targum and Testament. 1972.

The most thorough grounding available in the various disciplines of NT study, this is an invaluable tool for students, scholars and other serious readers of the earliest Christian writings. With a full survey of scholarship on each topic, in 600 packed pages the volume gives a reliable, in-depth presentation of: the history of interpretation – the NT canon – text criticism – the language of the NT – the historical and literary context – methods and approaches.

New Testament Texts and the Roman World encapsulates the rich teaching and ministry career of Dr. Gerald Stevens. This Festschrift serves to celebrate this career and Stevens’s contributions to the academic guild. The essays in this work resonate with the interests of Stevens—studies in the text of Acts, in Pauline texts, and in John’s Apocalypse. Contributors present studies using intertextuality, social-scientific approaches, theological approaches, literary studies in Roman, Jewish, and mythological texts, and consideration of the cultural and historical settings of the texts.

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.