Biblical Studies Carnival 197 for July 2022

Welcome to the 197th Biblical Studies Carnival for July 2022. July is the slowest time of the year for BiblioBloggers. Academics are well know for taking the whole summer off and doing nothing. Heck, that is why I got into academics in the first place. Even though most BiblioBloggers were sunning themselves on a beach at some swanky resort, a few managed to post some high quality material during in July. Hopefully I did not miss many, feel free to add your post in the comments.

Next month Ben the Amateur Exegete will host the Biblical Studies Carnival, so follow Ben on Twitter, @amateurexegete. I still need a volunteer for September 2022 (Due October 1), November 2022 (Due December 1), and December 2022 (Due January 1).  Or, if you are into long term planning, any month in 2023.  If you have thought about hosting, now is the time to step up and contact me via email, plong42@gmail.com or DM on twitter (plong42) to discuss hosting a summer Biblical Studies carnival. If you are a new BiblioBlogger, this is a good way to get your blog some recognition. And, to quote Jim West, “They are fun to do!”

Feel free to contact me if you have any questions about hosting a Carnival this summer (or fall). Check out the Biblical Studies Carnival Master List at the top of this page to visit past carnivals.

 

Hebrew Bible

Erica Lee Martin, “How Lovely Are Your Tents, O Jacob” – Balaam’s Fertility Blessing at TheTorah.com

Claude Mariottini on Egypt, The Land of the Pharaohs. Claude also posted a collection of links to previous posts on God answering prayer in the Old Testament.

Pete Enns Ruins Numbers (podcast). Tl;dr There’s lot of wandering in Numbers. I think they should have called it “wandering” instead of Numbers. — @peteenns

Bob MacDonald made a few comments on the small twitter war over David and Bathsheba – rape or adultery? James McGrath has a summary of the tweets and points out a few blog posts on either side of the argument. Paul Carter at TGC calls it rape, Andrew Perriman says “we may have to conclude that the question of whether Bathsheba was “raped” or was complicit or even ambitious cannot be answered definitively,” they commented no one is blaming Bathsheba and added another post on Amnon and Tamar. I think Perriman is right, “Bathsheba is the ewe lamb in Nathan’s parable and therefore an innocent victim of violence,” but I do think calling it a rape in modern teaching situations is appropriate. Claude Mariottini also commented on this issue, “I believe the facts in the text seem to indicate that it was David’s fault that this sordid affair took place. Readers should sympathize with Bathsheba, not with David.”

Weekend Fisher at Heart, Mind, Soul, and Strength posted twice on Psalm 119: The meditative, contemplative act of worship and A Deep Dive into Different Aspects of the Word of God, which the Psalmist praises.

Judith Newman on Jonah and Prayer.

Cynthia Shafer-Elliott, The Geographical Context of Ancient Israel, Part 1: Ancient Israel’s Place in the Ancient Near East.

We all have wondered, What has William Ross been up to in 2022?

Targuman made it to Z… “Z is for “Zeal.”

The Bible Mapper provides maps for biblical events.

Controversy Rages Over ‘Jerusalem Curse’ Inscription. James Tabor has a few things to say about the “Jerusalem Curse” (with a collection of links).

Dots between words in Northwest Semitic inscriptions.

On OTTC (a blog for Old Testament Textual Criticism), Drew Longacre posted a link to HebrewPal, the Hebrew Paleography Database. Follow the link and browse the database.

Jonathan Orr-Stav asks, “Can the Hebrew word למו ever be translated in the singular?” In the comments, Bob MacDonald answers. Orr-Stav’s blog, Notes by Autumn Light, focuses on Hebrew translation.

Balashon-Hebrew Language Detective investigates Hebrew – Biblical, Talmudic, Medieval and Modern – including slang; related languages like Aramaic, Arabic, Akkadian and Yiddish; and how foreign languages like Greek, Latin and English have entered Hebrew – and how Hebrew has affected those languages as well. For example, in July they posted on the etymology of olar, “pen knife.” I did enjoy the piece on falafel, Fascinating stuff.

At Early Christian Texts, Brandon Scott on The Difficulties and the Art of Bible Translation.

 

New Testament

Bill Heroman discusses Receptive Chronologizing in Mark 1-3.

Philip Jenkins discusses The Stichometery of Nicephorus in Gospels That Were Lost, And Some That Were Not Lost At All.  Jenkins also celebrated the Feast of Mary Magdalene (July 22) with a post on Creating the Myth of Mary Magdalene.

James McGrath has been walking In the Footsteps of John the Baptist.

• Part 1, From the Mediterranean Sea to the Sea of Galilee
• Part 2: Yardenit, Tiberias, and Bet Alfa
• Part 3: Aenon near Salim
• Part 4: Samaria

He also gathered some great links on Samaritans. John MacDonald linked to an interview with James McGrath on John the Baptist on the Mythvision podcast (link goes to YouTube, the whole video is about two hours).

Καταπέτασμα discusses When demoniacs win: The triumph of Christ’s apocalyptic spirit

Ian Paul, Wealth becomes a rival god in Luke 12.

David Turner commented on John 2, The Blessed Virgin, a Wedding Party with Problems, and a Lesson on Prayer, with a video of David teaching the passage.

Heather Anne Thiessen at Matters of Interpretation studies John 14:15-29.

B. J. Oropeza interviewed Matthew Novenson, author of Paul, Then and Now (Eerdmans, 2022). Part Two of the interview is here.

Richard Beck, Economies of Death: Thoughts on Ananias and Sapphira.

Perry Kea at Bible Search & Rescue, “Translating Words – Does It Really Mean “Homosexual”?

Stephen Unthank at A Place for Truth, Romans 8: Christ is Our Life.

Marg Mowczko, posted a “a work in progress” on Kephalē (“head”) as Metaphor in First-Century Texts. Examples from Philo, Josephus Plutarch, etc. Earlier in the month, she posted on Colossians 3:18 (wives) and Colossians 3:19 (husbands).

Ken Schenck has been working on Hebrews, including a lengthy Introduction to Hebrews and several posts of  Explanatory Notes — Hebrews 11:23-40,

James Tabor wonders if we can recover the original Jewish version of the Book of Revelation.

 

Theology

W. Travis McMaken says John Calvin as Old Testament Interpreter: A Bundle of Contradictions. Technically, this is an excerpt from T. H. L Parker, Calvin’s Old Testament Commentaries (Westminster/John Knox, 1993), 6–7.

Jeffrey Stivason on the Incomprehensibility of God.

Peter Goeman asks, “Are All Cultures Equal? A Biblical Paradigm” at The Musings of a Bible Sojourner

Vincent Pontius at Classical Theology posted on The Flight of Gregory Nazianzen and the Challenge of New Beginnings as a reflection on his own move to pastor at The Plains UMC.

Bradley Bowen at Secular Frontier engages Kreeft and Tacelli’s arguments for the divinity of Jesus (basically the classic trilemma from C. S. Lewis). This is a long series of posts, this link drops into the middle of the conversation.

Richard Beck at Experimental Theology asks, “What Comes First? Virtue or Practice?” Part two is here, using white fragility as an example.

Just in time for the Fourth of July, Thoas Kidd discusses The Jefferson Bible and the Faith of an American Founder.

Ken Schenck on Wesleyan philosophy, specifically proofs for the existence of God.

 

Book Reviews

Anthony Keddie, Class and Power in Roman Palestine: The Socioeconomic Setting of Judaism and Christian Origins. Cambridge University Press, 2019. (Reviewed by Taylor M. Weaver)

Adam Copenhaver and Jeffrey D. Arthurs, Colossians, Philemon (Kerux Commentary) Kregel 2021. (Reviewed by Phillip Long)

Duane Garrett and Calvin Pearson, Jeremiah and Lamentations (Kerux Commentary) Kregel 2022. (Reviewed by Phillip Long)

Joan Taylor and Helen Bond, Women Remembered: Jesus’ Female Disciples. Hodder & Stoughton, 2022. (Reviewed by Suzanne Fagence Cooper)

Todd R. Hains, Martin Luther and the Rule of Faith: Reading God’s Word for God’s People. IVP Academic, 2022. (Reviewed by Jim West)

Michael J. Gorman, Romans: A Theological and Pastoral Commentary (Eerdmans, 2022) (Reviewed by Phillip Long)

Élcio Mendonça, O primeiro Estado de Israel: redescobertas arqueológicas sobre suas origens. São Paulo: Recriar, 2020. (Reviewed by Airton José da Silva)

Geoffrey Fulkerson and Joel Thomas Chopp, eds., Science and the Doctrine of Creation: The Approaches of Ten Modern Theologians. IVP Academic, 2021. (Reviewed by Josh Reeves)

Jonathan T. Pennington, Jesus the Great Philosopher. Brazos, 2020. (Reviewed by Phillip Long)

James M. Hamilton Jr., Psalms (2 Volumes; Evangelical Biblical Theology Commentary) Lexham, 2022. (Reviewed by Phillip Long)

Other

Nijay Gupta asked, “Why Get a Doctor of Ministry?” and “Should I Do a PhD with the Academic Job Market So Bad?” the tl;dr answer, “If you are thinking about doing a PhD, here is my quick and basic advice: (1) Is this a calling? (2) Is your family/community supportive? (3) Do your mentors/teachers affirm that you have the chops and skills for this? (4) Are you willing to risk the money/time?  If you’ve “counted the cost,” then I will cheer you on.”

No pronouns in the Bible? Just dumb enough to earn Jim West’s highest honor, the Dilly.  Although this one would qualify as well: