Introduction to the New Testament

New Testament Introduction

• New Testament does not suggest that the Old Testament is no longer useful.
• "New" refers to the second testament, presupposing a first.
• Testament means "Covenant."
• New Testament comprises a set of 27 books.

Why Study the New Testament

• The New Testament completes the Bible as the Word of God, composed of two covenants.
• It represents a fulfillment of the Old Testament.
• Serves as spiritual nourishment for believers.
• God reveals Himself ultimately through Jesus Christ in the New Testament.
• The original language of the New Testament is Greek.

New Testament Books and Authors

• List the 27 books of the New Testament and their authors.

The 27 New Testament Books

• Matthew
• Mark
• Luke
• John
• Acts
• Romans
• 1 Corinthians
• 2 Corinthians
• Galatians
• Ephesians
• Philippians
• Colossians
• 1 Thessalonians
• 2 Thessalonians
• 1 Timothy
• 2 Timothy
• Titus
• Philemon
• Hebrews
• James
• 1 Peter
• 2 Peter
• 1 John
• 2 John
• 3 John
• Jude
• Revelation

Division of the New Testament

• The New Testament has 4 major divisions: biographies, history, epistles, and apocalypse.
• Biographies record the history of Jesus Christ, including His birth, person, mission, death, resurrection, and ascension.
• These are contained in the 4 Gospels Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
• Matthew, Mark, and Luke are Synoptic Gospels, purely historical in nature.
• The Gospel of John is a Non-synoptic gospel, more theological, historical, and apologetic in nature.
• History presents the spread of the gospel from Christ's ascension through the apostles until Paul's arrival to Rome.
• The book of Acts presents this history.

Epistles

• Epistles are letters written in the first century by church leaders and individuals.
• Paul wrote the majority of these epistles.
• Journey epistles were written by Paul during his missionary journeys, including Galatians, Romans, Corinthians, and Thessalonians.
• Prison epistles were written by Paul during his imprisonment in Rome, including Philippians, Ephesians, Philemon, and Colossians.
• Pastoral epistles were written to young pastors addressing personal, administrative, and congregational matters, including 1 and 2 Timothy and Titus.
• General epistles, also called "catholic" epistles, apply to the universal body of believers and are written to no specific congregation.
• These include 1 and 2 Peter, James, 1,2, and 3 John, Hebrews, and Jude.

Apocalypse

• Apocalypse represents a message coded in highly symbolic writing, using deep imagery given by God to His people.
• Often coded for people going through severe and difficult times, offering a future perspective on a present reality.
• The book of Revelation presents this genre when believers were going through Roman oppression.

Canon Introduction

• Canon definition in literal meaning means "measure" or "standard".
• Canon is a collection of books recognized as inspired by God, authoritative as a measure of faith and practice standard.
• The process of canonization was lengthy.
• The rise of heresies and persecutions influenced canonization.
• Criteria included: the author's authority, the book's content bearing the mark of inspiration by God, and its authoritativeness.
• The writing had to be accepted by the universal body of believers and not just a small community.
• Implications of canonization include specifying the limitations of canon, investing the books with authority, and prohibiting change.

Catholic and Protestant Bibles

• The difference is due to Apocryphal books, which were excluded by early believers but reintroduced into the canon by the Roman Catholic Church.
• These books include I & II Maccabeaus, Tobit, and Judith.
• No original Bible manuscripts exist today.
• Translations are based on 4th-century manuscripts and beyond.
• English translations vary based on whether they lean toward original languages or contemporary idiom.
• Translations include the King James Version, Living Bible, RSV, and New International Bible.

Scripture Transmission

• Two important documents include the Qumran Community Dead Sea Scrolls (200-70 BC)
• Septuagint - 3rd century BC

Inter-testamental History

• The New Testament era differed from the Old Testament, with the absence of Synagogues, Pharisees, Sadducees, Herodians, Sanhedrin, and Diaspora.
• This development occurred during the 400 years between the Old and New Testaments, marked by an absence of prophetic activity, therefore called "silent years.”
• This period shaped the world in which the New Testament was written.
• Jews remained under foreign rule until the New Testament period, influencing their self-understanding.

The Dispersion

• "Diaspora" is a Greek term for "dispersion" or "scattering," referring to Jewish communities outside Jerusalem after the Babylonian exile.
• Many Jews prospered in Babylon and didn't return; others fled to Egypt, establishing thriving Jewish communities.
• From this time, Jewish migrations intermixed with other peoples of the region throughout the known world.
• The proportion of the Jews living in "dispersion" increased, creating diverse cultural expressions of Judaism.
• The need to live out their faith outside the Promised Land led to the development of the SYNAGOGUE.
• The Synagogue system was invented during the time of captivity, replacing the temple worship and sacrifices.

Four Key Political Developments

• Persian Period
• Greek Period
• Hasmonean Period
• Roman Period

Persian Period 538-532 BC

• Babylonian captivity ended with Persian conquest.
• King Cyrus allowed Jews to return, but some remained in Diaspora.
• The Davidic dynasty ended as the ruling monarchy.
• Jews continued lives without a king or independence under leaders like Zerubbabel, Ezra, and Nehemiah.
• The "scribes" arose, skilled in studying the law, cf. Ezra 7:10.
• The highest Jewish official was the High Priest.

The Greek Period 332-142

• Greeks spread their culture leading to "Hellenism," the blending of Greek culture with others.
• This Hellenistic period spanned from Alexander to the Roman Empire.
• Judaism was affected by Hellenism even though Jews opposed Greek culture.
• Alexander the Great established a vast empire, transforming ancient Near East.
• Greek culture remained dominant until the spread of Islam.
• Greek became the lingua franca of the areas Alexander conquered.
• Despite its autonomy, Greek culture absorbed ideas and practices everywhere it went.
• Rural Egyptians expressed hopes and prayers in Greek, while Greek rulers adopted the ideology of the Pharaohs.

Hellenism

• Hellenism established a common language and education throughout the Eastern Mediterranean and ANE.
• Paul could communicate with Christians in Eastern Asia Minor and in Rome in the same language.
• Greek education remained stable over a long period.
• Numerous cultures disappeared.
• Jews struggled to maintain their identity against Greek culture, questioning how to respond to the attack of Greek culture that was at odds with the Mosaic law.
• Jewish responses began producing different expressions in Judaism.
• When Alexander the Great died, his generals divided the territory.
• Seleucus took over Syria, and Ptolemy took over Egypt.

Egyptian Era 320-63 BC

• Palestine was under the Ptolemies.
• Jews prospered and migrated to Alexandria, where the Septuagint was produced.
• The Jewish local government was run by High Priests.
• The Ptolemic period was more favorable to the Jews compared to the Seleucid period.

Syrian Era 200-142 BC

• The Greek rulers of Syria were called Seleucids.
• Antiochus I defeated the Egyptians and took over Palestine.
• Antiochus IV Epiphany, meaning "the glorious”, crushed Jewish opposition.
• To force Jewish resistance, Antiochus Epiphanies (AE) forbade circumcision and Sabbath observance, forcing people to eat pork.
• He thought he would return Jewish loyalties, but this led to open revolts by the Jews.
• Unrest and opposition began to develop, but AE enforced full Hellenisation.

Syrian Era - 164 BC

• King Antiochus Epiphanes sacrificed a pig on the altar and dedicated it to Jupiter.
• He sent 22,000 soldiers and burned down Jerusalem.
• He opposed the Law to circumcise, observe the Sabbath, hold festivals, or people possessing copies of the Old Testament.
• A revolt was led by the old priest Mattathias and his 5 sons, including Judas Maccabeus, which led to the Maccabean revolt.
• Judas Maccabeus led the revolt especially because of the temple's desecration.
• Mathias refused to make a pagan sacrifice and killed a Jewish priest who offered to do so and filled the mountains with his sons.

Maccabean Period (167-63)

• Judas Maccabeus succeeded his father and waged war against AE.
• He seized Jerusalem and the Temple, cleansing it.
• This led to the Feast of Dedication (Hanukah).
• After cleansing, Jews gained some independence, but the Seleucid threat was still very real.
• JM helped Jews attain religious freedom, rededicate the temple, and remove Syrian troops from Jerusalem.
• AE's specific attacks on Jewish people established these factors as part of Jewish self-understanding.
• As a result, circumcision, food laws, and Sabbath keeping in the New Testament were not peripheral issues.
• Observing these distinctiveness is what makes a Jew (part of the people of God).
• As with Exodus from Egypt, the Maccabean revolt was seen as God acting to vindicate His Name, Land, Law, and His People.

Hasmonean Period Semi-Independence

• The Hasmonean Dynasty was started by JM and ruled for over a century.
• Jewish people regained semi-independence, but those in power were looked upon as “compromised” Jews.
• They fought with one another over power.
• Often made deals with the Seleucid overloads they had fought to overthrow.
• Adopted Greek customs.
• This left the Jews confused as they had been after returning from Babylon.
• Some formed separate communities (Qumran).
• Some tried to reform from within (Pharisees).
• Some tried to vie for power (revolutionaries).

The Roman Period

• A squabble occurred between two Hasmonean kings.
• Pompey walked into Jerusalem and the Holy of Holies.
• Pompey's conquest ended Jewish independence, and Judea became an official province.
• The confusion of Jews was multiplied, questioning how Pompey walked into the holy of holies if YHWH could throw off AE.
• The Jews wondered if God would raise a new JM.
• Rome inherited the hatred of Babylon, the Persians, the Greeks, and Seleucids.
• Herod the Great was appointed by the Romans but was not fully accepted by Jews (because he was half Jew).

Cultural World of the New Testament

• The Roman Empire was a mix of independent cities, states, and territories all subject to the central government.
• Some cities joined the empire through voluntary alliance, others by conquest.
• The Roman provincial system was a government machinery that grew with time.
• "Provincia" was the office of carrying on war or a post of command.
• Peaceful provinces loyal to Rome were governed by proconsuls, e.g. Achaia (under Gallio) 18:12.
• Turbulent provinces under the emperor were governed by prefects/procurators, e.g. Palestine (under Pontius Pilate) Mt. 27:13.

Social World

• The chief characteristic was the institution of slavery.
• The New Testament slavery was not the same as the trans-Atlantic slave trade.
• Along with freemen, slaves were a large population
• Most slaves were artisans and professionals.
• People entered slavery through war, debt, or birth.
• The New Testament neither attacks nor approves of slavery.
• Bloody contests were common, leading to arenas later being grounds for persecution.

Languages in The New Testament

• Latin was used in law courts and literature of Rome, mainly in the Western Roman World.
• Greek was the cultural language of the empire, familiar to all educated persons, known as the lingua franca.
• Aramaic was the predominant tongue of the Near East.
• Classical Hebrew was a dead language since Ezra's time.
• The inscription on Jesus' cross was in Hebrew (Aramaic), Latin, and Greek.

Religious World Features

• The Greco-Roman pantheon existed, e.g. Diana (Artemis) of Ephesians 19:34.
• Emperor worship deemed the emperor to be a deity.
• Christians who refused were violently persecuted.
• Philosophies included Platonism, Gnosticism, Neo-Platonism, Epicurianism, Stoicism, Cynicism, and Scepticism.
• Two different features existed in Jewish people: Hebraists and Hellenists.
• Hebraists kept circumcision and valued Judaism and temple worship, using Hebrew and Aramaic.
• Hellenists followed Greco-Roman culture, used Greek, and operated on a Syncretistic culture.

Feasts

• Passover marks the anniversary of deliverance from Egypt and is central to Judaism
• Every male Jew had to to Jerusalem for this celebration.
• The Feast of Pentecost took place 7 weeks after Passover and recalls anniversary of giving the law on Mt. Sinai.
• Feast of Trumpets is the beginning of the New Year.
• Day of Atonement is the holiest day in the Hebrew calendar where the high priest entered the Holy of Holies to offer sacrifices.
• The Feast of Lights commemorates the concentration of the temple.
• The Feast of Purim celebrates the salvation of the Jews by Queen Esther and Mordecai.

Sects

• Pharisees separated from rest and adhered strictly to the Mosaic and the oral law.
• Practiced strict tithing laws, fasting, etc with varying levels of sincerity.
• Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea offer good examples.
• Sadducees were sons of Zadok and possessed political power.
• This group denied angels, spirits, and resurrection of the dead and did not survive the destruction of the temple in AD 70.
• Essenes practiced ascetic life abstaining from marriage.
• Zealots advocated violence as a means of liberation.