Observations on Acts Archives

Free Logos Mobile Education Course for July 2020

Normally the Logos Free Book of the Month promotion is a book. In July, they are giving away a 2.5 hour Mobile Ed, Sons and Daughters of God: The Believer’s Identity, Calling, and Destiny by Michael S. Heiser. Most readers will associate Michael Heiser with his books on Angels, Demons and The Unseen Realm.

From the Logos Blurb:

Believers are children of God—a phrase that presumes family. The “children of God” are also called “holy ones” (“saints” in most translations). But these familiar New Testament terms have an Old Testament context that is largely overlooked—the spiritual world of God and his supernatural children. In the Old Testament, “sons of God” and “holy ones” refers to supernatural beings whose Father is God and who work with God to carry out his will. Learn where the metaphor of being in God’s family comes from in the Old Testament and how that informs our sense of identity and mission as believers.

Normally this course retails for over $90, but for the month of July you can get it for free. This is a great opportunity to try out a Logos Mobile Ed course.

There are several other Mobile Ed courses on offer in July at deep discounts (75% – 85% off):

Doug Trick, God’s Word as Translation (2 hour course, $9.99)
Mark Futado, Introductory Issues in Psalms (3 hour course, $19.99)
Craig Evans, The Dead Sea Scrolls and the New Testament (5 hour course, $34.99)
Jonathan Pennington, The Sermon on the Mount (5 hour course, $34.99)
Daniel Doriani, The Parables of Jesus (6 hour course, $34.99)
Ian Jones, Introducing Biblical Counseling: The History of Counseling (5 hour course, $34.99)
Chris Armstrong, The History of Christianity in the United States (10 hour course, $59.99)
Justin Irving, The Ministry Leader and the Inner Life (11 hour course, $59.99)
Rebekah Josberger, Introducing Torah (8 hour course, $59.99)
William Klein, Interpreting New Testament Genres (9 hour course, $59.99)

You need to have Logos Bible Software to use these resources. As always, there are less expensive paths to upgrading that will keep you from mortgaging your home. At the very least, download the free Logos Basic or any Logos 8 base package. Try using the coupon code PARTNEROFFER8.

Any books or courses you purchase from Logos can be read on a mobile device via the free iOS app. These valuable resources are only free (and discounted) through July 31, 2020.

Biblical Studies Carnival 169 for February 2020

Bob MacDonald posted a Mardi Gras themed Biblical Studies Carnival for February 2020. You might know Bob from his extremely detailed musical studies, but his has been active as a Biblio-Blogger for many years and has hosted the Carnival several times. He has collected a wide range of serious biblical and theological posts, all are worthy of a click. Maybe add a few new blogs to your regular reading list.

Next month Brent Niedergall hosts the March 2020 (Due April 1). I have gotten to know Brent a bit over the last couple of months and I am looking forward to his carnival.

I getting a bit desperate for volunteers for the rest of 2020. As of March 1, no one has volunteer for the rest of the year. Even if you hosted in 2019 feel free to volunteer again. I am always interested in getting new bloggers and podcasters involved. If you have questions about what writing a carnival involves, contact me via email, plong42@gmail.com or twitter DM @plong42

Carnivals are fun to write and a good Carnival draws attention to your blog. The Amateur Exegete posted his year in Blog Summary recently, his August 2019 carnival was his second most popular post of the year.

My New Book: Galatians: Freedom through God’s Grace

My new book, Galatians: Freedom through God’s Grace, is now available through Amazon with the Kindle version coming soon.

I have been working on this book for a long time, and I am glad to have it in print.You can also order it through the Wipf & Stock website (it is a little less expensive there, they will charge shipping so it is about the same as Amazon Prime). If you are a blogger and want to review the book Wipf & Stock has a “Request Review Copy” on their page and they can send you a copy.

Craig Keener’s commentary on Galatians also came out recently and I am happy to say at 156 pages, my book is almost as long as his bibliography.

I intended this book as a basic introduction to Paul’s Letter to the Galatians. I divided the book into fourteen chapters (plus one chapter for the introduction). I think it would fit nicely into a Sunday School or small group Bible Study for a quarter. In fact, the book has its origins as a Sunday Evening Bible Study at my church.

Here are my goals in this book in contrast to other styles of commentaries already on the market.

First, this is not an exegetical commentary. I do not comment on the Greek text nor do I try to solve every difficulty in the text. Perhaps I will return to the text of Galatians and produce a more formal and scholarly commentary in the future, but the goals of this commentary preclude me from dealing with more technical aspects of the letter. I rarely comment on Greek grammar except where it is critical to the meaning of a verse. While I do include some cultural and historical background in order to illuminate the text, I do not claim to be comprehensive in this area. There is far more to say about the background to Galatians than I cover in this book. There are several places in the book where I reflect some insights of the so-called “new perspective on Paul,” but this book is neither a critique nor a defense of this view of Paul’s letters.

Second, I do not intend for this book to be an expositional commentary, although that is the closest model. Expositional commentaries focus on an English translation and attempt to explain the details of the text. My goal is not necessarily the details but the overall point Paul makes in the letter. I will therefore move through Galatians in sections and comment on the most important aspects of each section to understand what Paul is trying to say both to the original readers and to Christians living in similar situations in the twenty-first century. I have attempted to ground this contemporary application in the text of the Bible.

Third, I intend this book for laymen, Bible teachers, and busy pastors who need an overview of the main issues in the book of Galatians. I envision this book being used in a small group Bible study or Sunday School class as a supplement to reading the letter to the Galatians. No book should ever be used to replace reading Scripture, but perhaps this book will help readers to better understand some nuances of Paul’s thought in his letter to the Galatians.

Here is how you can help me out. First, buy a copy of the book for yourself (I do not mind if you want to wait for the less expensive Kindle version). Second, recommend your church library purchase a copy; if you attend a Bible College or seminary, request the book for your library.

If you do buy the book please leave a review on Amazon. You can even review the book if you did not buy it from Amazon. Just a few kind words would really help others to purchase the book. It is incredibly important to have good reviews on Amazon these days, so please leave your comments and rating at Amazon and I will be eternally grateful.

In old news, Jesus the Bridegroom is only $10 for Kindle, and I see a few cheaper copies both new and used if you want a print copy. Again, please consider leaving a review for that book as well.

So what’s next? I have two or three similar books in process, I hope to have Ephesians finished this fall.

Eerdmans Sale on Kindle Books for July 2019

During the month of July, Eerdmans has some great deals on Kindle versions of recent publications. Although I prefer real books to digital (and Logos books to Kindle), these books are worth the price. If you do not own a Kindle device, you can get an App on most devices to read Kindle books. I use the iPad Kindle App, it is very convenient for travel (or reading in the dark).

Although used hardback copies are available for less, George Eldon Ladd, A Theology of the New Testament (1974) is $4.99. This was one of the most influential books on evangelical scholarship. Ladd “popularized a view of the kingdom as having two dimensions: ‘already/not yet’” (The Gospel Coalition, Trevin Wax, A Theologian You Should Know).

Commenting on Ladd’s legacy John D’Elia said

Ladd’s legacy within evangelical scholarship is hard to overstate. I argue in the book that he carved out a place for evangelicals in what was then the threatening and bewildering world of critical biblical scholarship. By demystifying the methods of critical scholarship, Ladd made them available to evangelicals who wanted to use them in their study of the Scriptures. Historic premillennialism, then, is really an incidental part of Ladd’s story.

A few other interesting titles:

Michael F. Bird’s The Gospel of the Lord: How the Early Church Wrote the Story of Jesus (2014), 3.99. I reviewed this book in three parts starting here. To quote myself:

Michael Bird’s The Gospel of the Lord: How the Early Church Wrote the Story of Jesus is a study of the origins of the New Testament Gospel. The first three chapters concern the pre-literary forms of the Gospels, focusing on the shape of the Jesus tradition. He includes a chapter on the Synoptic Problem and another on the genre of the Gospels, two often discussed issues in Gospels introductions. Finally, he concludes the book with a chapter on the reason four Gospels were included in the canon of Scripture rather than only single story of Jesus. Each chapter concludes with a related excursus. While most excurses are brief expansions on some technical aspect of a chapter, some of Bird’s excurses are long enough to be chapters on their own. The book was named one of Christianity Today’s top books of the year in the Biblical Studies category.

Michael Green’s Thirty Years That Changed the World: The Book Acts for Today (2004) is a quick overview of the book of Acts.

Anthony J. Saldarini, Pharisees, Scribes and Sadducees in Palestinian Society (2001, The Biblical Resource Series; $2.99). An excellent academic text on Second Temple Judaism.

Reinhard Pummer, The Samaritans: A Profile (2014, $2.99). I reviewed this book in 2016, concluding:

Pummer’s introduction to the Samaritans goes beyond the usual topics to include the whole history of Samaritan culture. By blending literary and archaeological sources, Pummer presents a clear and concise picture of the Samarians both in antiquity and in the modern world. Although the arrangement of topics is sometimes odd, this book will be a useful contribution to the ongoing study of the Samaritans.

William Dever’s Did God Have a Wife?: Archaeology and Folk Religion in Ancient Israel (2008, $3.99) caused a bit of a stir when it was published. Ziony Zevit blurbbed the book:

“Once again William Dever has written a page-turner for thoughtful individuals interested in the Bible. This time, however, he explores what most biblicists ignore — the folk religion of ancient Israel, the religion as lived and practiced. . . Although written for the general public, this is one book that scholars cannot afford to miss. . . Writing in a personal style sprinkled with anecdotes, Dever has produced a rare work — a book that may be read and appreciated by all who take the Bible, archaeology, and history seriously. Packed with information, crackling with brilliant observations.”

For church history, Michael Graves, The Inspiration and Interpretation of Scripture: What the Early Church Can Teach Us (2014, $3.99). I reviewed the book here.

Here is a different sort of title for me: Dale Allison’s Night Comes: Death, Imagination, and the Last Things (2019,$1.99). This short book was developed from Allison’s Stone Lectures at Princeton Theological Seminary in October 2014. As he notes in his preface, these essays are edited and are more like a series of thoughts and reflections on life, death and the afterlife. As the book develops, there is a sense of Allison’s struggle as a scholar to deal some very basic issues human existence. You can read my full review of the book here.

There are quite a few others, so poke around the Eerdmans books on Amazon and see what you can find.

The sale runs through the end of July 2019.

Kindle Deals on Second Temple Judaism and the New Testament Backgrounds from Eerdmans

I was poking around on Amazon looking for something else, and noticed several excellent Kindle deals on a few older Eerdmans publications. I have all these books in my “real book” library and can state with confidence these are all worth owning and reading. I prefer physical books, but for a only two or three dollars, it might be worth your time to read these using your Kindle device or Kindle app on your iPad (or other tablet).

There are two from Gabriele Boccaccini: Beyond the Essene Hypothesis: The Parting of the Ways between Qumran and Enochic Judaism (Eerdmans 1998), $1.99 and Roots of Rabbinic Judaism (Eerdmans, 2001), $1.99. John J. Collins said “Gabriele Boccaccini’s earlier book, Beyond the Essene Hypothesis, has been hailed as one of the most original and provocative works on Second Temple Judaism in recent years. He has now written a wide-ranging and ambitious typology of Jewish intellectual history in this period. He brings a fresh and original perspective to the material, and his bold reconstruction is sure to be controversial.”

Speaking of John Collins, his Between Athens and Jerusalem: Jewish Identity in the Hellenistic Diaspora (Eerdmans, 1983) is $2.99. This is the companion to The Apocalyptic Imagination: An Introduction to Jewish Apocalyptic Literature (Eerdmans, 2010) and covers the non-apocalyptic intertestamental literature. These two books are excellent introductions to the literature of the Second Temple Period. I used both books frequently in the Second Temple Period Literature series over the past few summers.

There are also two by Bruce Winter. After Paul Left Corinth: The Influence of Secular Ethics and Social Change (Eerdmans, 2001) is $2.99. This is one of my favorite books ever, essential reading for understanding the situation behind the Corinthian letters. I read this soon after it was originally published, my copy is extremely marked up and my notes on 1 Corinthians are deeply indebted to Winter’s book.

Winter’s Roman Wives, Roman Widows: The Appearance of New Women and the Pauline Communities (Eerdmans, 2003) is only $1.99. “In ancient Roman law ‘you were what you wore.’ This legal principle became highly significant because, beginning in the first century A.D., a new kind of woman emerged across the Roman Empire — a woman whose provocative dress and sometimes promiscuous lifestyle contrasted starkly with the decorum of the traditional married woman. What a woman chose to wear came to identify her as either new or modest. Augustus legislated against the new woman. Philosophical schools encouraged their followers to avoid embracing her way of life. And, as this fascinating book demonstrates for the first time, the presence of the new woman was also felt in the early church, where Paul exhorted Christian wives and widows to emulate neither her dress code nor her conduct.”

I have no idea how long these deals will be available, so grab the Kindle version of these excellent resources before they are gone. I am not affiliated with either Eerdmans or Amazon, but I do like passing on good book deals when I see them.