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New Testament

Bibliography for

New Testament Studies

by Lars Kierspel, Ph.D.

Introduction

This bibliography is by far not comprehensive or exhaustive. The bibliographies referred to near the end provide additional help in locating relevant literature. The following list mentions some major (mostly) evangelical contributions in certain fields of New Testament research that are especially pertinent to the degree programs of our college and seminary. It is designed to help the student avoid using substandard sources which so often compromise the quality of research and writing (see at the end of the list). Students with majors in Biblical Studies should consider purchasing many of these books and make them part of their lifelong learning during and after their degree program. I especially want to encourage the use of the dictionaries mentioned below since they are written by specialists in the field who provide competent and compact insight into almost any topic of the New Testament with further reference to important literature at the end of each article.

New Testament Dictionaries

Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels. Ed. Joel B. Green, Scot McKnight. Downers Grove, IL: IVP, 1992.

Dictionary of Paul and His Letters. Ed. G.F. Hawthorne, R.P. Martin. Downers Grove, IL: IVP, 1993.

Dictionary of The Later New Testament & Its Developments. Ed. R.P. Martin, P.H. Davids. Downers Grove, IL: IVP, 1997.

New Dictionary of Biblical Theology. Edited by T. D. Alexander, B. S. Rosner, D. A. Carson, G. Goldsworthy. Downers Grove, IL: IVP, 2000.

The Anchor Bible Dictionary. 6 vols. New York: Doubleday, 1992.

The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology. Ed. Colin Brown. 4 vols. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1986.

Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, 10 vol. Ed. Gerhard Kittel, et al., trans. Geoffrey W. Bromiley. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1964-1976.

New Testament Background

Collections of Primary Sources

New Testament Background: Writings from Ancient Greece and the Roman Empire That Illuminate Christian Origins. Ed. C. K. Barrett. San Francisco: Harper, 1995.

Bock, Darrell L., Gregory J. Herrick. Jesus in Context: Background Readings for Gospel Study. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2005.

Hellenistic Commentary to the New Testament. Ed. by E. M. Boring, K. Berger, and C. Colpe. Nashville: Abindgon Press, 1995.

Readings from the First Century World: Primary Sources for New Testament Study. Ed. W. A. Elwell, R. W. Yarbrough. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1998.

Background of the New Testament

Dictionary of New Testament Background. Ed. Craig Evans & Stanley E. Porter. Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 2000.

Evans, Craig A. Ancient Texts for New Testament Studies: A Guide to the Background Literature. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 2005.

Ferguson, Everett. Backgrounds of Early Christianity, 2nd ed. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1993.

Horsley Richard A. & J. S. Hanson. Bandits, Prophets, and Messiahs: Popular Movements at the Time of Jesus. Harrisburg, PA: Trinity Press International, 1999.

Malina, Bruce J. The New Testament World: Insights from Cultural Anthropology. 3rd ed. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox, 2001.

Witherington, Ben. New Testament History: A Narrative Account. Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 2001.

New Testament Introduction & Survey

Brown, Raymond E. An Introduction to the New Testament. Anchor Bible Reference Library. New York: Doubleday, 1997.

Carson, D. A. and D. J. Moo. An Introduction to the New Testament. G.R.: Zondervan, 2005.2

Elwell, Walter A., Robert W. Yarbrough. Encountering the New Testament: A Historical and Theological Survey, 2nd ed. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2005.

Guthrie, Donald. New Testament Introduction. 4th ed. Downers Grove, IL: IVP, 1990.

Marshall, I. Howard, Stephen Travis, Ian Paul. Exploring the New Testament, vol. 2: A Guide to the Letters & Revelation. Downers Grove: IVP, 2001.

Wenham, David & Steve Walton. Exploring the New Testament, vol. 1. A Guide to the Gospel & Acts. Downers Grove: IVP, 2001.

New Testament Exegesis

Matthew

Carson, D. A. Matthew. 2 vols. The Expositor’s Bible Commentary. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1995. [599 p.]

Garland, David E. Reading Matthew: A Literary and Theological Commentary on the First Gospel. New York: Crossroad, 1993.

Keener, Craig. S. A Commentary on the Gospel of Matthew. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1999. [1040 p.]

Turner, David L. The Gospel of Matthew. Cornerstone Biblical Commentary. Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2005. [389 p.]

Wilkins, Michael J. Matthew. The NIV Application Commentary. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2004. [1008 p.]

John

Burge, Gary M. Interpreting the Gospel of John. Guides to New Testament Exegesis. Grand Rapids: Baker, 1992. [187 p.]

Burge, Gary M. John. The NIV Application Commentary. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2000. [618 p.]

Keener, Craig S. The Gospel of John: A  Commentary. 2 vols. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 2003. [1636 p.]

Köstenberger, A. John. Baker Exegetical Commentary of the New Testament. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2004. [736 p.]

Morris, Leon. The Gospel According to John. The New International Commentary of the New Testament. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1995. [815 p.]

Paul

Fitzmyer, Joseph A. Paul and His Theology: A Brief Sketch. Edgewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1987. [119 p.]

Polhill, John B. Paul and His Letters. Nashville: Broadman and Holman, 1999. 

Schnelle, Udo. Apostle Paul: His Life and Theology. Trans. M. E. Boring. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 2005. [695 p.]

Schreiner, Thomas. Interpreting the Pauline Epistles. Guides to New Testament Exegesis. Grand Rapids: Baker, 1990. [167 p.]

Romans

Moo, Douglas. The Epistle to the Romans. The New International Commentary of the New Testament. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1996. [1111 p.]

Mounce, Robert H. Romans. The New American Commentary. Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1995. [301 p.]

Osborne, G. R. Romans. New Testament Commentary. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 2004. [400 p.]

Schreiner, Thomas. Romans. Baker Exegetical Commentary of the New Testament.  Grand Rapids: Baker, 1998. [832 p.]

Hebrews

Bruce, F. F. The Epistle to the Hebrews. The New International Commentary of the New Testament. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1990.2  [426 p.]

Guthrie, George H. Hebrews. The NIV Application Commentary. Grand Grapids: Zondervan, 1998.

Hagner, Donald A. Encountering the Book of Hebrews: An Exposition. Encountering Biblical Studies. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2002. [213 p.]

Trotter, Andrew H. Jr. Interpreting the Epistle to the Hebrews. Guides to New Testament Exegesis.  Grand Rapids: Baker, 1997. [222 p.]

Revelation

Beale, G. K. The Book of Revelation. The New International Greek Testament Commentary. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1999. [1245 p.]

Keener, Craig S. Revelation. The NIV Application Commentary. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2000.

Michaels, J. Ramsey. Interpreting the Book of Revelation. Guides to New Testament Exegesis. Grand Rapids: Baker, 1992. [150 p.]

Mounce, Robert H. The Book of Revelation. The New International Commentary of the New Testament. Rev. ed. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1998. [439 p.]

Osborne, Grant R. Revelation. Baker Exegetical Commentary of the New Testament.  Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2002. [869 p.]

 

New Testament Theology

Guthrie, Donald.  Theology of the New Testament: A Thematic Study. Leicester: IVP, 1981. [1064 p.]

Ladd, George Eldon. A Theology of the New Testament. Rev. Ed., ed. D. A. Hagner. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1993 [764 p.].

Marshall, I. Howard. New Testament Theology. Many Witnesses, One Gospel. Downers Grove, IL: IVP, 2004. [765 p.]

Morris, Leon. New Testament Theology. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1990. [367 p.]

Thielman, Frank. Theology of the New Testament. A Canonical and Synthetic Approach. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2005. [798 p.]

New Testament Journals

Many hardcopy theological journals are indexed on a website so that you can browse the archive and easily find specific articles relevant to your research. Sometimes websites of journals also offer free access to reviews of books, abstracts for articles or even to selected articles themselves (e.g., Biblica). Making use of these online services is definitely a time of research well spent! The following are some of the leading journals devoted to the study of the New Testament:

Biblica

http://www.bsw.org/?l=71

Harvard Theological Review

http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayJournal?jid=HTR

Interpretation

http://www.interpretation.org/

Journal for the Study of the Historical Jesus

http://jhj.sagepub.com/

Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society

http://www.etsjets.org/jets/journal/jets.html

Journal of Greco-Roman Christianity and Judaism

http://divinity.mcmaster.ca/jgrchj/home

Neotestamentica

http://www.neotestamentica.net/

New Testament Studies

http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayJournal?jid=NTS

Novum Testamentum

http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/brill/not

Review & Expositor

http://www.rande.org

Review of Biblical Literature

http://www.bookreviews.org/

Scottish Journal of Theology

http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayJournal?jid=SJT

Tyndale Bulletin

http://www.tyndale.cam.ac.uk/tyndale/tb/contents.htm

Westminster Theological Journal

http://www.wts.edu/publications/wtj/index.html

 

Bible Software

Bible Works for Windows CD-ROM Version 7 (2006)            $ 400

The professional program for biblical studies, with original texts in Hebrew and Greek plus many translations (including Josephus and Philo), lexica, and dictionaries.

Theological Journal Library Vols 1-5                                         $ 200

Contains all articles of 15 evangelical journals from as far back as the 1930s! Vols. 6-8 can be bought separately as updates of the journals until 2004.

Bibliographies

Carson, D.A. New Testament Commentary Survey. 5th ed. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2001.

Evans, Craig A. Jesus. IBR Bibliographies 5. Grand Rapids: Baker, 1992.

________. Life of Jesus Research: An Annotated Bibliography. Rev. ed. New Testament Tools and Studies 24. Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1996.

McKnight, Scott, M. C. Williams. The Synoptic Gospels. IBR Bibliographies 6. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2000.

Porter, Stanley E., Lee Martin McDonald. New Testament Introduction. IBR Bibliographies 12. Grand Rapids: Baker, 1995.

Seifrid, Mark A., Randall Tan. The Pauline Writings. IBR Bibliographies 9. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2002.

http://www.trinitysem.edu/Student/Library/Library.html

OCLC FirstSearch™ is a search engine with access to many databases. The most important one for students of theology is ATLAReligion. Some of the articles and reviews are even available in full text per mouseclick!

http://www.denverseminary.edu/dj/articles2006/0200/0201

Denver Journal – Extensive bibliography to all areas of New Testament Studies, updated August 2006!

http://moses.creighton.edu/harmless/bibliographies_for_theology/Index.htm

A New Testament Bibliography compiled by William Harmless, S.J., from Creighton University. The list is very organized and has sometimes a strong catholic bent.

http://library.sbts.edu/

Catalog of the James Boyce Centennial Library of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, KY. The catalog can be accessed by anyone without a charge.

http://www.ixtheo.de/cgi-bin/ixtheo/maskeeng.pl?db=ixtheo

The “Index theologicus (IxTheo),” a powerful search engine of the University of Tübingen for theological literature (articles and books). For example, the search for “Gospel of Matthew” showed 1756 results!

http://www.library.yale.edu/div/bibleref.htm

Website from Yale University Divinity School Library: refers to further bibliographies organized by various fields of NT research

http://www.chass.utoronto.ca/~kloppen/retrospective.htm

Website of the University of Toronto: offers bibliographic literature to each book of the New Testament and various fields of NT research.

https://wwwdbunil.unil.ch/bibil/?MIval=/bi/en/bibilhome&BiMenu=10&BiMain=6&vvedid=4248 

Website of the University of Lausanne. Strong focus on current scholarly literature in different languages, nicely organized by Gospels, Gospel of John, Acts, Letters of Paul, Pastoral Epistles, Hebrews, Catholic Epistles, James, Revelation.

Substandard Sources

Substandard sources are articles, books and online-resources that were written for the purpose of personal devotion or practical ministry, but not for academic research and writing. The use of these sources will automatically result in the loss of points for students in the Master and Doctoral program.

  • Online Sermons
  • Old commentaries written for laypeople, such as commentaries by Henry Matthew, Jamiesson / Fausset / Brown, Adam Clarke, J. V. McGee, etc.
  • Literature written for church ministry and lay people, e.g., Bible handbooks, Study Bibles, most one-volume commentaries, books written by radio speakers, conference speakers, evangelists, etc.