Identifying Paul's Opponents: The Question of Method in 2 Corinthians (Library of New Testament Studies)

by Jerry L. Sumney

Publisher:

Bloomsbury

, 2015

Overview

To develop a method for identifying Paul's opponents it is first necessary to analyse procedures used by previous scholars. Too little attention has been paid in the past to issues of method, and many procedures have been used which violate the canons of historical research. In the first place, limits should be set upon the use of historical reconstructions and of external sources, and the determinative source for identifying the opponents of any letter must be that letter itself. Secondly, a satisfactory method will analyse passages within the primary text according to the nature of the section (e.g. polemical or didactic) and the types of statements they contain (e.g. explicit statements about opponents or allusions to them). Then each combination of context and statement type is evaluated to determine (1) how certain we can be about whether the passage refers to opponents and (2) how much distortion is likely to be present. The application of the proposed method to the two letters within 2 Corinthians indicates that Paul faced the same group of opponents in both letters. These opponents were pneumatics who demanded a particular manner of life as evidence that a person possesses the measure of the spirit which makes one an apostle.

Key Features

• Analyzes procedures used by previous scholars
• Suggests that the determinative source for identifying the opponents of any letter must be that letter itself
• States that a satisfactory method will analyse passages within the primary text according to the nature of the section and the types of statements they contain

Contents

Part I - A Survey of the Methods Used to Identify Paul’s Opponents

• Chapter 2 Judaizers
• Chapter 3 Gnostics
• Chapter 4 Divine Men
• Chapter 5 Pneumatics
• Chapter 6 Conclusion to Part I

Part II - Proposal of a Sound Method for Identifying Opponents

• Introduction
• Historical Reconstructions
• Sources Other than the Primary Text
• Assessing Passages within the Primary Text
• Conclusion to Part II

Part III Applying the Method to 2 Corinthians

• Introduction
• The Integrity of 2 Corinthians
• 2 Corinthians 1-9
• 2 Corinthians 10-13
• Conclusion to Part III
• Results

Product Details

• Title: Identifying Paul's Opponents: The Question of Method in 2 Corinthians (The Library of New Testament Studies)
• Author: Jerry L. Sumney
• Series: Library of New Testament Studies
• Publisher: Bloomsbury
• Print Publication Date: 2015
• Pages: 272
• Language: English
• Resources: 1
• Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
• ISBNs: 9781474230902, 1474230903
• Resource ID: LLS:DNTFYNG2CRNTHNS
• Resource Type: Monograph
• Metadata Last Updated: 2022-09-29T23:21:16Z

About Jerry L. Sumney

Jerry L. Sumney was born in Indiana and grew up in central Florida. He taught in the religion department at Ferrum College from 1986-1997. Mr. Sumney is a member of the Society of Biblical Literature and is past president for the Southeastern Region of the Society. At the national level, he also served as the chair of the steering committee for the Theology of the Disputed Paulines Group from 1996-2001 and currently serves as the chair of the steering committee for the Disputed Paulines Consultation. He is also currently chair for the Pauline Epistles and Literature Section of the international meeting of the SBL. He has written four books: Identifying Paul’s Opponents; Servants of Satan, False Brothers, and Other Pauline Opponents; Preaching Apocalyptic Texts (co-authored with Larry Paul Jones) and Philippians, A Handbook for Second-Year Greek Students (forthcoming, Hendickson, 2004). He is co-editor of Theology and Ethics in Paul and His Interpreters and Paul and Pathos. He also has written several articles in journals and books. He is currently working on a commentary on Colossians for the New Testament Library series. Mr. Sumney and his wife, Diane, have three daughters: Elizabeth, Victoria, and Margaret.