Justification and Variegated Nomism, Volume II: The Paradoxes of Paul
Overview
In the time since the publication of E. P. Sanders’ seminal work Paul and Palestinian Judaism, numerous publications, reviews, monographs, and analyses of this “New Perspective on Paul” have emerged, exploring covenantal nomism—but, in the estimation of the editors of these two volumes, little new ground has been tread. Editors D. A. Carson, Mark Seifrid, and Peter O’Brien bring together over a dozen experts in these thick volumes to provide a fresh, new look at Paul with special awareness of the literature of Second Temple Judaism. Some of the specific areas treated include literary genre, Josephus, Philo, the Targumim, Rabbinic literature, the Pharisees, and the usage of ‘righteousness language’ in Early Judaism. Comprehensive and deep, the essays in these volumes make a strong case for a reconsideration of the “New Perspective on Paul” and a rare treatment of the ancient literature that influenced this early apostle. This essential second volume of Justification and Variegated Nomism attempts to apply the analyses and scholarship from the first volume to the difficult writings of Paul.
Top Highlights
“As we have argued elsewhere, it is clear from these contexts that when Paul speaks of the ‘righteousness of God’ he does not refer to an abstract divine attribute, but to the event of God’s justification over against fallen humanity, which paradoxically is also the justification of the fallen human being.” (Page 55)
“In the first place, we found reason to conclude that righteousness language in the Hebrew Scriptures (as in the Ancient Near East generally) has its basis in creational theology rather than in the framework of covenantal ideas.” (Page 40)
“Precisely in its forensic sense, therefore, ‘justification’ entails deliverance and salvation.” (Page 41)
“For Paul, these truths re-shape his understanding of antecedent revelation: he can no longer read the Scriptures that he shares with his fellow (but unconverted) Jews in quite the same way as in his pre-Damascus-road days. There are shifts in his understanding of eschatology, of the Spirit, of the locus of the people of God, of the way God deals with sin, of the proper basis of hope, of the right object of faith, of the substance of new covenant promises, of the role of Israel in redemptive history, and of much more.” (Page 397)
“The scope of this paper is quite modest. Romans 3:21–4:25 will be explored for what it shows about four key issues: first, the justification of Israel; second, the nature of justifying faith; third, God as the agent of justification and the object of faith; and finally, some reflections on the relationship between justification and atonement.” (Page 147)
- Title: Justification and Variegated Nomism, Volume II: The Paradoxes of Paul
- Authors: D. A. Carson, Mark A. Seifrid, Peter T. O'Brien
- Edition: 181
- Series: Wissenschaftliche Untersuchungen zum Neuen Testament
- Publishers: Baker Academic, Mohr Siebeck
- Print Publication Date: 2004
- Logos Release Date: 2013
- Era: era:Contemporary
- Language: English
- Resources: 1
- Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
- Subjects: Bible. N.T. Epistles of Paul › Theology; Judaism › History--Post-exilic period, 586 B.C.-210 A.D; Jewish religious literature › History and criticism; Covenants › Religious aspects--Judaism--History of doctrines; Justification (Christian theology); Law (Theology) › Biblical teaching
- Resource ID: LLS:JSTFCTNVRGTDNMS2
- Resource Type: text.monograph.biblical-theology
- Metadata Last Updated: 2022-02-11T15:44:08Z