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The Bipartite Structure of the Bible. 1) the Old Testament: (the Hebrew sacred scriptures) 2) the New Testament (the Canonical Christian scripture). The New Testament: Contents. The Gospels The Acts of the Apostles The Epistles Revelation. The New Testament.
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The Bipartite Structure of the Bible 1) the Old Testament: (the Hebrew sacred scriptures) 2) the New Testament (the Canonical Christian scripture)
The New Testament: Contents • The Gospels • The Acts of the Apostles • The Epistles • Revelation
The New Testament • Over all significance: --the Christian understanding of how Jesus Christ was related to Jewish history and fulfillment
The four languages spoken in Judea 1. Classical Hebrew: priestly caste 2. Aramaic: general population 3. Greek: upper & educated classes all over the Middle East 4. Latin: Roman government
The languages • Aramaic : Jesus’s preaching • Greek: the four Gospels * Jesus: “Go into all the world and preach the good news to the creation”
The Four Gospels • Written time: 40-60 years after Jesus’ death • Contents: based on the oral teachings of the original disciples • Titles: Mathew, Mark, Luke, John
The different implied readerships • Mathew: --readership: Jewish public --major themes: a) Jesus was the legitimate heir to the throne of the royal house of David b) Jesus was the king, the Messiah, announced by the Hebrew prophet
The different implied readerships • Mark: --readership: a gentile audience; especially the needs of the Roman reader
The different implied readerships • Luke: --readership: probably to cultured Greek readers; --feature: a) making very few references to the Hebrew prophecies b) is in fact dedicated to a Greek called Theophilos
The different implied readerships • John: --feature: with greater theological density --distinction with the other 3 Gospels: ** the other three: based on a central core of material--the Q document (now lost) ** John: drawing on different sources
The Canonization of the Christian Sacred Scriptures 1. the existence of many other documents and accounts about Jesus Christ 2. the current collection was judged by the church authorities as most reliable and was declared as canonical in the third century.
The Vulgate • Meaning: the common or popular version • Language: Latin • Time: 382 • Translator: Jerome (a scholar) • Commissioner: Pope Damascus in 382 • Other Latin translations existed before it as well.