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Bible

General Information

The word Bible is derived from the Greek biblia, meaning "books," and refers to the sacred writings of Judaism and Christianity. The Bible consists of two parts. The first part, called the Old Testament by Christians, consists of the sacred writings of the Jewish people and was written originally in Hebrew, except for some portions in Aramaic. The second part, called the New Testament, was composed in Greek and records the story of Jesus and the beginnings of Christianity. Translated in whole or in part into more than 1,500 languages, the Bible is the most widely distributed book in the world. Its influence on history and culture, including literature and the other arts, is incalculable.

The Old Testament

Major Themes and Characteristics

The Hebrew Bible, written over a period of more than 500 years, consists of many types of literature and reflects varying points of view. It is essentially religious, but, unlike most ancient religious books, the Old Testament is characterized by a strong sense of history; even laws and exhortations are woven into the narratives.

The themes are the uniqueness and glory of God (Yahweh), the Covenants he made with Israel, the Law, God's control of history and Israel's special destiny, God's revelation through the Prophets, the nature of humanity, corporate and individual sin and its remedy, and the true worship of God.

The Hebrews believed that their religion was founded on covenants that God offered them and that they had accepted. Yahweh had agreed to make them his specially chosen people and to protect them, but only if they obeyed his Law. Covenants were made with Noah, which embraced all humankind, and with Abraham and his descendants; but the most important covenant was revealed to Moses. Later, after the division of the Jews into two kingdoms - Judah and Israel - the people of Judah believed that a special covenant had also been made with King David and his royal descendants.

Yahweh was different from all other deities. Israel was forbidden to worship any other god, and the Mosaic religion perhaps implied that no other existed, although this was not specifically emphasized until the time of the exile during the Babylonian Captivity (587 - 37 BC). Other gods personified natural forces or tribes and nations, but Yahweh was supreme over everything. Because he controlled history, he could use Assyria or Babylonia to punish a rebellious Israel. Plentiful crops depended on his will alone and not on the magical rites by which the Baals of Canaan were worshiped. The concept of the Book of Leviticus was that the Hebrews were to be a holy people, separated from all defilement.

Many laws in the Pentateuch, or Torah, the first five books, were not different from those of surrounding nations. However, some unique commandments were given, without specific rewards and punishments; most important were the Ten Commandments, which have a high ethical content. The Torah (Law) was a complete religious and civil law for the whole nation. It prescribed sacrifices and festivals similar to those of other nations, but the emphasis was on morality. Yahweh was a God of justice. All sin and injustice was an offense against him; and repentance could bring forgiveness.

In the Book of Joshua, Yahweh is a God of war who commands the slaughter of the Canaanites, but the Hebrew religion gradually outgrew such a concept, as can be seen in the books of Jeremiah and Jonah. The prophets saw history as an interaction between the living God and his people, and its outcome depended on their obedience. Israel was destined to be a light to the nations, but it always had a special place in God's purpose and love, and the Hebrews always struggled with the two concepts of God's impartial justice and his love toward Israel. Late in the biblical period, writers of Apocalyptic Literature, unlike the earlier prophets, despaired of the normal forces of history and believed that God would put an end to the present age, bringing in a miraculous reign of righteousness.

These themes were not systematized into a theology but can be discerned from the literature as a whole, which expresses the hopes, fears, laments, thanksgivings, and even the doubts of the Hebrews. Thus the Book of Job criticizes the popular, facile doctrine of reward and punishment, and the Book of Ecclesiastes often approaches skepticism.

The Canon

The canon, or officially accepted list of books in the Hebrew Bible, consists of 24 books according to Jewish reckoning and is divided into three parts: the Law, the Prophets, and the Writings. The Law (Torah), often called the Pentateuch, comprises five books, Genesis through Deuteronomy. The Prophets (Nevi im) are divided into three parts: the earlier prophets (Joshua, Judges, 1 and 2 Samuel, and 1 and 2 Kings); the later prophets (Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel); and twelve books called the Minor Prophets because of their brevity. The 11 Writings (Ketuvim) include three poetic books (Psalms, Proverbs, and Job); the five scrolls (Song of Solomon, Ruth, Lamentations, Ecclesiastes, and Esther); an apocalyptic work, Daniel; and Ezra - Nehemiah and 1 and 2 Chronicles.

Christian Bibles arrange the books differently. The Law, or Pentateuch, comes first, then all the historical books. These are followed by the poetical, or wisdom, books and finally the prophetic books. Thus Ruth, Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther appear in the second group and Daniel and Lamentations in the fourth.

[Editor's Note: Christian Bibles also generally divide apart all of the separate Books, so the Canon is described as being a total of 39 Books, but which are the same text as the 24 Books of the Hebrew Bible. For example, where the Hebrew Bible counts the Twelve Minor Prophets as one Book, Christian Bibles almost universally count them as twelve Books.]

The Jews never ceased writing religious books. Several books composed in Hebrew or Greek after 300 BC are part of the Septuagint, or Old Greek version, and were regarded as Scripture by many Christians. Roman Catholics and the Orthodox include these books, called Apocrypha or deuterocanonical books, in the Bible. Protestants omit them or print them as an appendix to the Bible.

Divisions of the Old Testament

[The following discussion uses the Christian classification of books.]

Pentateuch

Genesis recounts the creation of the universe and the first human beings, the traditions of the Deluge, and the stories of the patriarchs down to the sojourn of the Hebrews in Egypt and the deaths of Jacob and Joseph. Exodus tells how Moses led the people from Egypt and received the covenant and Law on Mount Sinai. Leviticus is largely a legal code; Numbers continues the story of migration toward the Promised Land. Deuteronomy partly repeats the narrative, recording other laws, and concludes with the death of Moses. It teaches a strict doctrine of corporate reward and punishment.

The Pentateuch is based on four principal sources. The oldest, J, was perhaps written in Judah, the southern kingdom, about 950 BC. Between 900 and 750, another version from Israel, the northern kingdom, was woven in; this is called Ephraim (E). In the 7th century BC, Deuteronomy, or most of it (D), was compiled. About 550 BC, during the exile, the final edition of the Torah added a priestly source (P), some parts of which are very old.

Historical Books

Joshua tells of a thorough conquest of Canaan, but Judges contains traditions of the Hebrew tribes in the period before the monarchy that reveal the conquest as partial. The books of Samuel are about the founding of the monarchy under Saul and David and contain a magnificent early source for the life of David, probably written about 961 - 22 BC. All the above books have been extensively edited by writers who shared the theology of the D source.

Ezra and Nehemiah were composed after the exile, when these two leaders restored Judaism in Palestine, and Nehemiah's own memoirs make up much of the latter book. The two Books of Chronicles cover Hebrew history from Ezra's priestly point of view but contain some valuable earlier traditions. Ruth is the story of a foreign woman who became loyal to Israel and was the ancestor of David. Esther is a tale of a Jewish queen of Persia who saved her people from persecution.

Poetical, or Wisdom, Books

Job contains some of the finest poetry in the Bible. Its themes are the problems of suffering and of man's standing before God. The Psalms were essentially composed for temple worship, although some may be pieces of individual devotion. Many are ascribed to David, but some come from an earlier period. Proverbs comprises several collections of ancient wisdom. Parts of Ecclesiastes are skeptical, but other sections express conventional wisdom. The Song of Solomon is a collection of love poems.

The Prophets

The great prophets of the 8th century BC were Amos, Hosea, Isaiah, and Micah. They proclaimed God's holiness and his judgment on the idol worship and moral abuses of the Hebrew kingdoms, and called the people back to loyalty to the covenant. Jeremiah, the greatest prophet of the 7th century BC, was unique in recording his inner spiritual struggles and in promising a new covenant. Like Isaiah, he opposed military alliances with foreign nations and resistance to the Babylonian invasion. Zephaniah and perhaps Habakkuk belong to the same century. Nahum gloats over the destruction (612 BC) of Nineveh. The most significant prophets during the period of Babylonian exile were the Ezekiel and the unknown authors of chapters 40 - 55 and 56 - 66 of Isaiah, who encouraged the return of the Jews to the Holy Land and promised a glorious national life. Lamentations reflects the miseries of the exile.

The remaining prophets followed the exile. Obadiah is strongly nationalistic; Jonah expresses God's concern for Gentiles as well as Jews. Haggai and Zechariah 1 - 8 reflect the rebuilding of a small temple in Jerusalem. Joel, Zechariah 9 - 14, and Malachi combine the themes of judgment and restoration and have apocalyptic elements. Daniel is an apocalypse from the Maccabean period (c. 164 BC) and promises God's help to the Jews in time of persecution.

The New Testament

Major Themes and Characteristics

Covenant and law are central in the Old Testament, and Jesus Christ is central in the New Testament. The dominant theme is the interpretation of Jesus' nature as Christ or Messiah (the anointed one), Son of man, Son of God, Lord, and Prophet. This was a complete reinterpretation of the Jewish hope for an anointed king descended from David. Perhaps before Jesus' death, his disciples had already acclaimed him as Messiah, but they became convinced of this from experiences that proved to them he was again alive. Thus the Resurrection is the second major theme. The Messiah now came to mean, not a conquering, successful king, but a crucified Lord whose unique relationship to God could be suggested only partially by the titles applied to him.

In explaining and defending their faith, the disciples of Jesus found passages in the Old Testament that they believed were prophecies of his death, resurrection, and nature (for example, Psalm 110:1, Isaiah 53; Daniel 7:13 - 14). They also preserved Jesus' sayings and the stories of his life, which they interpreted in light of their faith. Jesus had proclaimed the gospel ("good news") of the coming reign, or kingdom, of God and carried on a ministry of teaching, forgiveness, and healing. Although much of his teaching agreed with that of other Jews, his more radical and prophetic sayings made enemies. The high priest and his associates feared Jesus as a threat to the established order, and the Roman governor Pontius Pilate was persuaded to have Jesus crucified. Thus, the gospel tradition contains both the message of Jesus and the proclamation of his divine nature.

Other new experiences of ecstasy and prophecy were interpreted as gifts of the Holy Spirit. Indeed, most books of the New Testament ponder the relation of the old and the new. Christians, and Jesus himself, believed in the same God as other Jews and recognized the authority of the Old Testament. Yet Jesus had made radical statements that undermined the separateness of Judaism and led logically to the admission of Gentiles into the community. Thus, there emerged a Church embracing Jews and non Jews that was interpreted as based on a new covenant inaugurated by Jesus. Paul, the greatest apostle of the Gentile mission, defended his policies by teaching that the basis for acceptance by God is faith in Jesus Christ; yet Paul did not wish to break continuity with the old religion.

The New Testament contains a strong apocalyptic element. Jesus' parables and sayings regarding the coming reign of God are enigmatic, and it is not certain that he expected the early end of the world; but many original Christians believed they were living in the last age. Nevertheless, much of the moral teaching of the New Testament is aimed at everyday life in this world, and Christian behavior is a constant theme. The New Testament reflects other concerns of community life, including public worship and church organization, but equal emphasis is placed on individual Prayer and communion with God.

The New Testament covers a much shorter period of time than the Old Testament, and its interests are fewer and more intense. This is partly because Christians had access to the Old Testament and other Jewish books. The New Testament was written concisely. Almost no attempt was made to imitate the fashionable literature of the time; yet the writings have great rhetorical power. Natural science had little influence. The outlook is not unscientific but prescientific; these are writings of faith, not speculation.

The Canon

The process by which the canon of the New Testament was formed began in the 2d century, probably with a collection of ten letters of Paul. Toward the end of that century, Irenaeus argued for the unique authority of the portion of the Canon called the Gospels. Acceptance of the other books came gradually. The church in Egypt used more than the present 27 books, and the Syriac speaking churches fewer. The question of an official canon became urgent during the 4th century. It was mainly through the influence of Athanasius, bishop of Alexandria, and because Jerome included the 27 books in his Latin version of the Bible called the Vulgate, that the present canon came to be accepted.

Divisions of the New Testament

The New Testament consists of four Gospels, the Acts of the Apostles, collections of Epistles, and the Book of Revelation.

The Gospels

Originally gospel meant "good news"(Greek evangelion). The term was later applied to books embodying this message. These are not biographies but proclamations of the good news in story form. Although all dates for New Testament books are debated, prevailing opinion dates Mark AD 68 - 72, Luke and Matthew c. 85, and John 95 - 100. The first three, called synoptic because they can be compared side by side, have a complicated literary relationship with each other. Probably Matthew and Luke used Mark and a lost document called Q (German Quelle, "source"), consisting mainly of Jesus' sayings. The parables - short illustrative stories told by Jesus, usually reflecting daily life - are prominent in the synoptics. The Gospel of John differs from the others in structure and reflects the theological development of the first century, but it contains traditions independent of the synoptics.

The Acts

The Acts of the Apostles was evidently written by Luke as a sequel to his Gospel. It recounts the traditions of the earliest churches in Palestine and gives the details of Paul's missionary journeys.

The Epistles

Two kinds of Epistles are attributed to St. Paul in the New Testament. Nine of them (ten, if Ephesians is included) are letters addressed by Paul to specific churches and deal mainly with problems of faith, morals, and community life. These letters disclose Paul's interpretation of Christianity and his methods of dealing with pastoral problems. The remainder are not actual letters; rather they are writings in letter form, intended for the whole church or large parts of it. Thus, the pastoral Epistles - 1 and 2 Timothy and Titus - written in Paul's name, contain directions for church leaders and warn against errors in doctrine and behavior. Hebrews is a carefully constructed sermon by an unknown author and interprets Christ as high priest and urges fidelity in time of persecution.

The general, or catholic, Epistles are so called because they are directed to the church as a whole. The Epistle of James emphasizes the importance of good deeds against an empty type of belief that involves no right action. The first Epistle of Peter proclaims joy in the face of persecution and is addressed particularly to congregations with newly baptized members. The Epistles of John resemble the fourth Gospel. St. John teaches the intimate relationship between love of the brotherhood and the true doctrine about Christ; he also attacks division within the church.

Revelation

The Book of Revelation was probably written to encourage Christians to be faithful during a persecution under Domitian (AD 81 - 96). It portrays the future through many symbols, and the prophet expects God's judgment on the Roman Empire, a 1,000 year reign of Christ, and a new heaven and a new Earth.

Versions of the Bible

Several Aramaic targums (free translations or paraphrases) of the Old Testament exist; some of them may be older than the Christian Era. The Greek Septuagint, whose canon was not strictly defined, was gradually produced during the last three centuries BC. An Old Latin version of both Testaments was revised by Jerome, producing the Vulgate. Ancient versions exist in Syriac, Coptic, Armenian, and other languages.

During the Middle Ages, parts of the Bible were put into Anglo Saxon and Middle English. The first English versions of the entire Bible were made (1380 - 93) by John Wycliffe and his associates who used the Latin text. The Reformation gave further impulse to translations into modern languages, notably that of Martin Luther in German and William Tyndale in English. Among later versions are the following: Miles Coverdale's Bible (1535), Matthew's Bible (1537), the Great Bible (1539), Geneva Bible (1560), Rheims - Douai Bible (1582, 1609), King James, or Authorized, Version (1611), English Revised Version (1881 - 85), American Standard Version (1946 - 57), New English Bible (1961 - 70), Jerusalem Bible (1966), New American Bible (1970), Today's English Version (1966 - 76), and the Revised Standard Version (1946 - 1971).

Interpretation and Study of the Bible

Ancient Interpretations

Ancient Jews and Christians believed their Scriptures to be inspired by God and intended to guide all generations. The interpretative method called Midrash sought to make the biblical message relevant to the actual needs of the community, to remove obscurities and contradictions, to find fulfillments of prophecies, and to answer questions not raised in the Bible by discovering allegorical meanings. This process is seen in the Dead Sea Scrolls, the paraphrases, or targums, of the Old Testament, and the writings of the philosopher Philo; and it has influenced New Testament theology. The Rabbis used midrash to settle legal problems; it appears in the Talmud as well as in the Midrashim, or homiletical commentaries.

Christians were influenced both by Jewish tradition and by philosophers who explained Greek myths as allegories. The Alexandrian scholar Origen distinguished literal and allegorical meanings in the Old Testament, and his followers found three or four ways to interpret a specific text. The school of Antioch, represented by commentators such as Theodore of Mopsuestia and the great preacher John Chrysostom, insisted on the natural and literal meaning of Scripture. During the Middle Ages the allegorical method largely prevailed.

Modern Study

During the Renaissance, a revival of the study of Greek and Latin classics occurred that led Christian scholars to study Hebrew. Literary and historical criticism, which had been carried on in ancient times, now received a new impetus. Although the allegorical method never died out in Catholicism and Protestantism, the new learning influenced the study of the Bible, and in the 18th century the techniques of classical studies began to be employed systematically. Improved dictionaries and grammars were part of this process.

Textual Criticism

Textual criticism is an important part of biblical interpretation. This is the comparison of manuscripts of the Bible in the original languages and versions, including quotations by ancient authors, to determine as nearly as possible the original wording. Literary criticism is the study of the document itself in comparison with other books - biblical and nonbiblical - to disclose the method, style, and purpose of the author; the author's identity; the written and oral sources used by the author; and the date and place of the writing. This has led to theories regarding sources of the Pentateuch and the Gospels, the dating of Paul's letters, and the distinctions between parts of Isaiah.

Form Criticism

Form criticism studies the oral tradition behind a document. Every oral tradition is modified by the life situations in which it is transmitted, and the stages of change can often be discerned, as in the stories of Abraham and Sarah. One may classify the Psalms according to their probable uses in worship. In the parables of Jesus, the original purpose can be distinguished from the church's interpretations and modifications. Form critics believe that the elements in Jesus' teaching that do not match the interests of Judaism or of the early church reflect his specific point of view.

Redaction Criticism

Redaction criticism, the study of editing, assumes that the authors of biblical books had a definite theology and purpose and were not mere collectors of traditions. Thus the traits of the writer of a book or a source can be distinguished from those of the materials by observing style and editorial method. Both form and redaction criticism involve the individual judgments of scholars; perfect agreement cannot be expected.

Historical Criticism

Historical criticism, which is the method of all serious historians, applies all these disciplines to the Bible and takes into account all historical evidence available, in both written documents and archaeological discoveries. Thus Ugaritic, Babylonian, Assyrian, Egyptian, Persian, and other records used with the Bible, aid in reconstructing the course of Hebrew history. New Testament history and the development of early Christian theology are illuminated by studying the documents of the Jewish and Greco Roman religions and Christian writings outside the New Testament.

Sherman E Johnson

Bibliography
Old Testament
B W Anderson, Understanding the Old Testament (1986); G W Coats and B O Long, eds., Canon and Authority (1977); J L McKenzie, The Two Edged Sword (1956); J A Sanders, Torah and Canon (1972); G Von Rad, Old Testament Theology (1962).

New Testament
R M Grant, The Formation of the New Testament (1966); H C Kee, Understanding the New Testament (1983); C F D Moule, The Birth of the New Testament (1981); J M Robinson and H Koester, Trajectories through Early Christianity (1971).

History and Criticism
R Alter and F Kermode, eds., The Literary Guide to the Bible (1987); F F Bruce, History of the Bible in English (1978); C H Dodd, The Bible Today (1946); R E Friedman, Who Wrote the Bible? (1987); R M Grant and D Tracy, A Short History of the Interpretation of the Bible (1984); K Koch, The Growth of Biblical Tradition (1969); N Perrin, What Is Redaction Criticism? (1969).

Also, see:
Versions of the Bible, Septuagint

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