Do not guess at the answers. Look up the answers in the lectures and the Course Orientation Infomation. Using full sentences for each item:
define 3 methods for the academic study of scriptures (See Lecture 1A):
1.
2.
3.
List 3 features of the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem in the 1st century (See Lecture 2B)
4.
5.
6.
List 3 beliefs of Judaism in the 1st century (See Lecture 2B).
7.
8.
9.
10. Are late submissions of assignments accepted, yes or no? (See the syllabus)
11. Can students send submissions and messages after 11 p.m. at night, yes or no? (See the Netiquette page)
12. Please provide an alternative email (if you have one) other than your vvc.edu email. Send one that you check the most often such as gmail, yahoo, etc. This will only be used in an emergency such as, if you are not present online when there is test and you are in danger of failing the class. Alternative email:
Historical Analytical Methods
for the study of
Scriptures
Exegesis vs. Eisegesis:
In the academic study of scriptures,
the method used is exegesis.
Exegesis means to “read out” of a text.
It is the opposite of eisegesis,
which means to “read into” a text.
To begin to apply exegesis on scriptures,
just like in a biology class,
a small section is examined,
such as a chapter.
This “text” is then analyzed
using the following
analytical methods:
image: bible open to 1 Corinthians chapter 1
1. The first exegetical method is Textual Analysis
This is the Quest for the original wording of a text.
The New Testament was originally written in Greek.
For centuries manuscripts were written
and then copied by hand – before the invention of the printing press.
Mistakes accumulated.
Textual Analysis consults the oldest manuscripts
to discover what the most original wording is,
before the mistakes accumulated.
image: Greek writing
If one does not know Greek
the second-best thing to do is to examine
the “textual apparatus” at the bottom of the page in the bible.
This provides “differences” in early manuscripts
for the reading one is examining.
2. Source Analysis
Seeks to determine who wrote the text
by comparing the writing to those of another author.
One examines differences in writing style,
differences in content,
and differences in vocabulary.
As Source scholars read through the Bible
the different writers of the Bible became obvious.
But like math, it takes practice, practice, practice
in order to identify the patterns of writing style accurately.
image: different brick patterns
3. Historical Analysis
Determines the historical and social context
(what was going on in history at the time).
A. One asks, what is the context for the writer.
B. And, what is the context for the events depicted in the passage.
Usually, time has passed between when an event happened
and then when it was written about.
Image: map with Israel highlighted
For 3.A., considering the historical context,
means looking at the text from the perspective
of the time period it was written in.
In order to do this, one must study the culture and concepts
of that time period.
This is why in an academic setting,
when studying the scriptures of Israel,
the surrounding cultures are also to be investigated.
4. Grammatical Analysis
analyzes the language of the text,
and seeks the meaning of words
in their historical settings.
Words change meaning over time.
image: Greek dictionary
5. Literary Analysis
Examines a passage as literature.
Looks at the literary context, what comes before and after this passage.
Identifies prominent themes.
And asks what techniques does the writer use.
6. Form Analysis
analyzes structure and form.
Identifies the genre = form
and life setting out of which the text arose.
Then, asks what was the writer’s intention.
Genres include: myth, story, biography, gospel, historical account,
sermon, poetry, song, prophetic oracle, etc.
Image: stack of book with titles of different Literary Genres
7. Tradition Analysis
Choose a topic in the text. Then search for older texts both within the
Bible and the surrounding cultures that has that topic. Chart how the
topic changes and evolves over time by comparing and contrasting.
Examples of topics: baptism, son or daughter of God, stories about
creation, floods, angels, etc.
8. Redaction Analysis
Looks at the work of the editor.
First find seams in a text. To do this,
one looks for abrupt changes in topic and style.
image: an editor
9. Structural Analysis
This method identifies opposites in a text,
such as day and night.
Then goes beyond dualistic thinking,
In this case, twilight would be beyond day and night.
images: day, night, twilight
10. Philosophical and scientific Analysis
This method examines the current philosophies
for the time period that the text was written in
and determines how philosophy has influenced the writing.
Science is a philosophy. One can also analyze a passage through
the lens of contemporary science. For example, this can help us
better understand the nature of miracles in the Bible. This does not
mean dismissing miracles as incomprehensible in a mechanistic
world, it means seeking to understand miracles in an organically
based world where all things are connected –
mind, matter, and spirit.
11. Feminist Analysis
Analyzes how women are portrayed in a text.
Are they portrayed as intelligent agents, passive pawns,
scapegoats for the world’s problems, or creative and caring, etc.
images: young women
12. Liberation Analysis
Asks who is being liberated and from what?
In an academic setting only after applying the exegetical methods,
do we then interpret what the biblical passage means.
Lecture by Prof. J. Corey, Ph. D., Victor Valley College
The Jewish Cultural Background to the New Testament
Judaism in the first century in Palestine
The birthplace of Judaism was Israel
?
Map 1st century
Jesus was Jewish
born to Jewish parents Mary and Joseph
The center of the Jewish religion was
the Temple in Jerusalem
The temple was originally built in 957 BCE
in King Solomon’s reign.
This was the first temple.
It was destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 BCE.
The 2nd Temple:
The Jewish temple was rebuilt in the 6th century BCE
when Jewish captives returned from Babylonian Exile.
Herod the Great was King of Judea in the 1st century BCE.
Herod’s Temple is a reconstruction of the 2nd Temple.
He began reconstructing the temple
which would take several years.
It was Herod the Great’s son, Herod Antipas
who was king in the time of Jesus.
The architecture and layout of the Temple represents purity.
Access was restricted by degrees.
First, the temple is surrounded by walls.
The outermost courtyard is the Gentile Courtyard.
Image: Gentile courtyard
Gentile means non-Jewish
Steps led up to “The Beautiful Gate” which opened into the
Court for Jewish Women.
More steps led up to the Court for Jewish Men.
Next, was the Court of Priests
where there was an altar for burnt offerings.
There was a water basin
mounted on 12 bronze bulls
for priests to ritually wash their hands.
More steps led to the inside of the actual temple.
Only priests could enter.
Inside, curtains separated what lay beyond.
Only the priest on duty could enter.
There was a golden altar where incense were offered.
And a 7-branched candelabrum called a menorah
and a table on which 12 loaves of bread
were placed each Sabbath.
Beyond this section was yet another curtain.
This led to “the Holy of Holies.”
curtain
Only the High Priest could enter.
He would only enter
one day a year,
on the Day of Atonement.
The Day of Atonement
is a day of cleansing of sins for the past year.
Praying on the Day
of Atonement
The temple would be destroyed by the Romans in 70 C.E.,
40 years after the death of Jesus.
Today, only the western portion of the wall of the temple remains.
This is called the Wailing Wall.
Today, the Dome of the Rock sits on the site of the temple ruins,
s
a Muslim
mosque completed in 691 C.E.
The Synagogue
The temple was only in Jerusalem.
Most Jews attended local weekly Sabbath meetings at Synagogues.
Synagogue is a Greek word which means “gathering together.”
A synagogue meeting could be in homes,
or special buildings called synagogues.
Image: ruins of a synagogue at Capernaum
Rabbis
were highly educated in the Jewish scriptures.
The leader of a synagogue would be a rabbi.
Not all rabbis were leaders of synagogues.
The word rabbi means spiritual teacher.
Jewish Beliefs
1.
Monotheism
2.
Covenant
3.
Law
1. Monotheism
Belief in One God, creator of the world.
There is no Trinity in Judaism.
The name of God in Hebrew: YHWH and Elohim
Yahweh (YHWH) means the one who causes (things) to come into being.
Elohim is a generic term for god;
It literally means many gods within the One God
or a Divine Assembly of gods (as in 1 Kings 22).
The Jewish god was a God of Holiness.
No images were allowed of this god.
The name of God was not to be spoken because it was too holy.
Even today, Jews do not speak or write “God.”
They will write “G-d.”
2. Covenant
God made agreements with individuals to protect them
and they in turn agreed to worship God and follow the divine laws.
The greatest event in the history of Judaism was
the Exodus from Egyptian slavery (13th century BCE).
Under the leadership of the prophet Moses,
the people were freed from slavery in Egypt.
They were led from Egypt to the Promised Land (of Canaan)
and they began the nation of Israel.
3. The Law
On Mt. Sinai, Moses received
the 10 Commandments.
The 10 commandments included prohibitions against
unethical practices, such as:
Killing
Stealing
Lying in court
Adultery
etc.
Also, in the 10 commandments it states to
Keep the Sabbath Day Holy.
Do no work on this day, once a week.
The Sabbath is from Friday sunset
through Saturday sunset.
There is a special meal shared with family.
Other Laws (not 10 commandments)
The rite (ritual) of circumcision:
All Jewish males are to be circumcised.
This is a practice common among Egyptian priests.
It emphasizes sexual purity.
Dietary restrictions in the Law
No pork
No shellfish
Many other deity restrictions.
All Israel’s Laws point to holiness
in moral or ethical dealings with one another
including our relationship with God
and in relation to our bodies.
Branches of Judaism in the 1st century:
Pharisees
2. Sadducees
3. Essenes
1.
4.
“The 4th Philosophy” (so named by the first century historian Josephus)
1. Pharisees
were interested in keeping the full Law in the Torah
(the Torah is the first 5 books of the Bible).
The Pharisees devised extra rules to help do this.
2. The Sadducees
were the Jewish aristocracy in Jerusalem.
They were the priests in charge of the Temple.
3. The Essenes
were highly concerned with ritual purity.
They moved to Qumran, on the outskirts of Jerusalem
and started their own community.
They practiced baptism
and expected an Apocalyptic End of the world soon.
They wrote the Dead Sea Scrolls.
4. “The 4th Philosophy” consisted of groups
who actively resisted foreign rule of Palestine
a.
such as the Sicari
b.
and the Zealots
a. The Sicari
Their name means dagger.
They assassinated and kidnapped and held for ransom
high ranking Jewish officials who cooperated with the Roman occupiers.
b. The Zealots
These were men from Galilee who violently fought to overthrow
the Jewish government in Jerusalem and the Roman occupiers.
The Romans response in 70 C.E. was to destroy Jerusalem
including the Temple.
A special category of Jewish individuals
(like the prophets in Jewish history)
were the Galilean Sons of God
1.
Honi the circle drawer
2.
Hanina Ben Dosi
3.
Jesus
1. Honi the circle drawer:
In a time of drought,
he drew a circle and refused to go out of it until it rained.
He was from Galilee
and was called a Son of God.
He prayed for rain and it came.
He was stoned to death by the people of Jerusalem
because he refused to pray to God to bring harm
on Israel’s enemies.
2. Hanina ben Dosa
He was from Galilee
and was called Son of God by a voice from heaven.
He prayed for rain and it came
and miraculously healed the sick.
3. Jesus
He was from Galilee
and was called Son of God.
He performed many miracles.
We have all semester to investigate him.
image: Galilee
Lecture by J. Corey, Ph.D., Victor Valley College