John P. Meier, Book Review, The New Testament

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738 Journal of Biblical Literature1:l- 18 and 3:9-20 receive no systematic discussion whatsoever, and yet they are consti-tutive for his unders tandin g of the book as a whole. This prevents him from establishingany clear unde rstand ing of th e interrelationship of the so-called universal reversal ofcreat ion language and the par t icular concern with Judah and Jerusalem in Zeph1:l-18, particularly in relation t o its potential impa ct on an audience , in order to de ter -mine i ts function in relat ion to Zeph 21 -3:8 . Ryou ther eby posi ts a fundam entaldichotomy behveen the nations a nd JudahiJerusalem in the interpretation of th e text inwhich h e argues that judgm ent is directe d against all of guilty Jud ah . But th e particu-lar language of th e passage suggests an inner-Jud ean dichotomy or deb ate in which th eaud ienc e is asked to choose th e righteous side and thereby avoid judgme nt. Thisassum ption likewise influences his diachronic analysis in tha t universal language of th epost-exilic period m ust be clearly distinguished from particular conc erns of th e pre -exilic age. It also influences his interpr etation of Ze ph 3:9-20 as a portrayal of the rem -nant that survives world-wide destruction. Furthermore, Ryou does not examine thesyntactical interrelationship of Zeph 3:9-20, which is joined t o th e preced ing material bythe particle ki-az for the n, and expresses the book's conce rn with Y ~ Y Sjudgmentas a means to deliver th e righteous of Jerusalem from affliction.In sum, Ryou provides a necessary methodological proposal for a combined syn-chron ic and diachronic reading of Zeph aniah, but it must be ap plied from the outset toth e book as a whole in ord er to achieve its full potential.

Marvin A. SweeneyClaremont School of Theology and Claremont Graduate School, Claremont, CA 91711

The Ne w Testamen t: Historical Introduction to the Early Christian Wri ting s by BartD . Ehrman. New YorkIOxford: Oxford University Press, 1997. Pp. xxvi 437. $34.00(paper) .

Th ere could hardly be a m ore daunting task for a NT scholar today than to write acomprehen sive introduction to th e NT . To the traditional massive amount of m aterial tobe c overe d one must now a dd consideration of new m ethod s (e.g., sociology of th e NT,narrative criticism) an d new questions (e.g ., feminist perspectives, anti-Semitism in t heN T) . More daunting still is th e prospect of writing such an introduction for undergradu-ate stude nts, whose biblical literacy and historical know ledge are at a low ebb .Taking on this challenge with co urage an d skill, Eh rm an has pro du ced a very use-ful tool for professors facing that tabula rasa the undergraduate mind. Ever consciousof his audience, Ehrman employs a simple, breezy, humorous style, replete with con-tempo rary metaphors and examples. H e of ten addresses his students directly (e .g . ,p . 6 : My working assumption . . . is that you have already familiarized yourself withthe conten ts o f . . . [Mark's Gospel] by reading it carefully. . . . At times one feels asthoug h on e we re hearing a tap e of his classroom lectures. In keeping with this interac-tive, cica coce tone , the text dispenses with footnotes an d most references to modernautho rs; a short annota ted bibliography follows each c hapte r.Sensitive to his stud ents' weak grasp of th e ancie nt world, Ehrm an takes nothingfor granted . H e begins by explaining how Greco-Roman religiosity, apart from Ju daism ,

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ookReviewswas almost the exact opposi te of what many Americans today take to be re l igion.Thro ugh out th e book, h e is at pains to d isabuse his students of pop ular misconceptionsabou t anc ient Christianity an d the NT. His emphasis on the diversity of early Christian-ity is th e basso continuo pervading the volume.

A basic problem for any author of a NT introduction is how to orde r the im me nsean d unwieldy material. Should on e follow th e canonical ord er, the chronological o rde rof th e writings (he nc e Paul first), or th e chronological o rde r in which major NT figuresapp eared o n t he historical scene (he nce Jesus first)? In a sense, Ehr ma n adopts the lastappr oach, but with a twist. After a general introduction to oral and written Jesu s tradi-tions, Eh rm an treats Mark, Matthew, Luke-Acts, John, the Johannine Epistles, an d anum ber of noncanonical Gospels from th e second century. Only then does h e m oveback to discuss t he historical Jesus in thr ee chapter s. H e opts for an apocalyptic Jesus inth e m ode of E . P. Sanders as opposed to the Cynic Jesus of the Jesus Seminar. Eh rma nfinally com es full circle by tracing th e develop men t of the tradition from Jesus to th eGospels.

T h e second m ajor section of the volume is devoted to Paul an d the P auline tradi-tion. Contrary to th e first section, Eh rm an begins with th e historical Paul. H e notes th edifficulties involved in reconstructing the historical Paul (Which epistles are pseudepi-grap hic? Ho w rel iable is Acts?). After providing a thum bnail sketch of Paul 's l i fe ,Eh rm an does the same for Paul's theology. H e then moves through all the undisputedPaulines, beginning with a full treatment of Thessalonians, but focusing especially onRom ans. T h e Deu tero-P auline s (Colossians, Ephesians) are treated with, but distin-guished fro m, th e Pastorals. At this point he inserts a separate chapter o n the oppres -sion of wom en in early Christianity, tracing th e shift he sees from th e relative fre edomof wom en in th e early Pauline churches to their subordination in the Pastorals. Not allwill find his inclusion of t h e Acts of Paul and Thecla in the discussion convincing; somescholars stil l date th e work toward t he en d of th e second century.

After these two major sections, Ehrm an faces a prob lem: how to organize the m oredisp arate m aterial left in the canon , as well as related noncanonical works? H e impo ses apedagogically useful if somewhat artificial grid on th e m aterial. He brew s an d th e Epistleof Barnabas com e un de r Christians and Jews ; Peter, Ignatius, the Martyrdom ofPolycarp and som e of the Apologists com e un der Christians an d Pagans ; Jam es, th eDidache the Letter of Polycarp, Clement Jude, and Peter come und er Christiansan d Christians ; th e Revelation of John, the Shepherd of Hermas and the Apocalypse ofPeter com e un de r Christians and the Cosmos. Th e volume concludes with an intro-duction to text criticism, E hrman's specialty. Th e work ends som ewhat abruptly; onemig ht have expected a final cha pter of reflections, draw ing tog ethe r various insights intoa final synthesis.

O ne m arvels at th e wealth of material Eh rma n has digested in a clear and orderlyform at. As th e subtitle indicates, the overriding metho d is historical, but Eh rm an takescare to introdu ce his stude nts to oth er methods: e.g., narrative criticism in M ark, a com -parative meth od in Luk e (i.e., Luk e as compa red to the oth er Gospels, without con cernfor literary dep ende nce), a thematic approach in Acts, and all four approaches in John .This pedagogical program means that not every part of every Gospel is covered in detail.For instance, the ch apter on M atthew focuses on th e Serm on on the M ount. Surpris-

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Journal of Biblical Literatureingly, there is no great discussion of th e literary str uc tur e of each G ospel; nowh ere is adetailed, chapter-by-cha pter outline of each Gospel given.

In tu ne with his emphasis on th e diversity of early Christianity, Eh rma n makes agrea t effort to re prese nt a variety of scholarly and religious views fairly. It is there forecurious tha t, just as he is inculcating the wide diversity of NT Christianity in his open ingcha pte r, he p resents t he list of the books of the Jewish ScripturesIOT that has beenado pted by Jews an d by most Protestan ts. Th e longer canon a dop ted, with variations, byCatholic, Orthodox, an d Oriental churche s is ignored. Moreover, despite his conce rn tobe even-ha nded, it becom es clear that Eh rm an has no great sympathy for th e proto-orthodox party, which is associated with such evaluative descrip tions as rigid. O n th ewhole , though, this introduction is as fair to all sides as on e can reasonably ex pect,Ehrman strives to present the results of mainstream scholarship. Rarely does he men-tion unusual views of his own (e.g., hat Pete r and Cephas were h o ifferent persons),and then only tentatively.

Needless to say, writing a NT introduction for undergradua tes with little or nobackground imposes severe restrictions on an au thor who could have easily com pose d amuch mo re deta i led t rea tme nt for h is peers . Sweeping generaliza tions and o ver-siinplifications are perh aps unavoidable when addressing und ergradua tes. At time s,thou gh, th e ne ed for simple explanations collides with th e complexity of the material, as,e.g., when Ehr ma n tries to lay out the argu men ts for the priority of Mark an d the exis-tence of Q At other tim es, the vast range of the m aterial to be covered seem s to occa-sion self-contradictions. F or example, on p. 3, Eh rm an states that the only Christianwritings that can be reliably dated to th e first centuty are found in th e New Te stamentitself. . . Yet, on p. 390, Ehrm an appears to accept a da te around A.D . 95-96 for1Clement.

Obviously, these critical observations are m ere quibbles. Ehrm an has do ne a mas-terful job of supplying professors with a first-rate introduction for underg radu ates. Allthose who teach th at challenging group a re in his de bt.

John P MeierTh e Catholic University of America, Washington, D C 20064

Theologie des Neuen Tes tam ents by Georg S trecker , rev ised and completed byFriedrich Wilhelm Horn. D e Gruyter Lehrbuch. B erlid Ne w York: de Gruyter, 1996.Pp. xiv + 741. DM 118,00 (pape r) .

At his death in Jun e 1994 Georg Strecker left incomplete two m ajor writing pro-jects, a theology of the NT and an ethics of the NT. Friedrich Wilhelm H orn d id a mas-terful job of completing the Theology from manuscripts, recorded tapes, and note filestha t had been collected over the years. Horn takes full responsibility for only th re eminor parts : 2 Thessalonians, Peter , and combined Jude and 2 Peter . Work on theEthics of the NT had not progressed to a point w here completion was possible within areasonable period of time. For that aspect of Strecker's work we remain de pen den t onhis Handlungsorientierter Glaube: Vorstu dien zu einer Ethik des Se ue n Testaments