Preserving Bible Times (PBT) is a faith-based ministry with a vision for preserving and presenting Biblical Truth through the integration of the Biblical text with its visual, historical, geographical and cultural context. Our endeavors include the development of streaming and other digitized materials that highlight the contextual issues found in “familiar” passages of Scripture, bringing the Bible alive in fresh, new ways for this and future generations.
Can You Recommend a Self-Guided Tutorial and Methodology for Integrated Biblical Context?
Self-Guided Tutorial and Methodology
for Integrated Biblical Context
Getting Oriented – Biblical Geography
Get James Monson’s Regions on the Run for a good tutorial on biblical geography. Done seriously, it can take 100 hours to process. Or consider an introductory approach to biblical geography by reading Geobasics in the Land of the Bible. Both of these tutorial options on biblical geography can be obtained on the www.biblicalbackgrounds.com website.
Getting Oriented – Biblical Frameworks
Get Doug Greenwold’s “The Five Story Lines of Scripture” where he teaches this framework perspective to the Teaching Directors of Community Bible Study. This is an essential framework for understanding the Bible from 30,000 feet. It’s available on the PBT website www.preservingbibletimes.org.
Getting Oriented – Seeing the “Pieces”
Jim Martin has two books that provide a nice contextual overview (different from an in-depth applications perspective) of hundreds of Bible/Gospel passages. It’s full color, 8 ½ X 11 inches in size, and each two-page spread gives you a great map, usually a close up and a distant shot of the site, often a museum biblical artifact that relates to the site, and a written overview of the main geographical, historical and cultural issues resident in each passage (again, you have to come up with your own implications of those facts). Many have found these books to be a wonderful visual resource and overview on the general contextual issues resident in each passage. The Visual Guide to the Bible book and The Visual Guide to the Gospels book are available at Amazon and various Christian book distributors.
Getting Oriented – Integrating the Narrative and Restoring the Passage
Consider reading Kenneth Bailey’s book Jesus through Middle Eastern Eyes (Amazon). Then read Doug Greenwold’s eBooks – Encounters with Jesus, The Rest of the Story, Making Disciples Jesus’ Way, Those Prodigal Sons, That Good Samaritan, Becoming a Judean Shepherd, and Zechariah and Elizabeth to see how the implications, insights and applications start to expand from restoring a passage back into its original integrated contextual understanding. Remember: The pursuit of an integrated contextual understanding of a passage is foundational if we are to discern the Spirit’s timeless, intended (original) meaning of the passage.
More on Gospel Culture
Consider reading Alfred Edersheim’s book The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah. It’s a 100+ year old classic that takes some plowing through, but is often worth it. It is available online from multiple sources. Also consider reading Joachim Jeremias Jerusalem in the Time of Jesus, another classic.
Other Contextual Resources
Depending on your appetite and interest, there are a goodly number of helpful books that focus on some different aspects of biblical context. By going to the FAQ’s section of the PBT website www.preservingbibletimes.org, and opening up the link “What Other Contextual Resources are Available,” you will find additional recommended resources for digging deeper into biblical context.
PBT’s Preferred Passage Contextual Restoration Methodology
1) The View from 30,000 Feet – “The Five Story Lines of Scripture”
2) The Context of the Era
a) The prevailing Worldview – how they thought
b) Cultural norms – how they functioned and behaved
3) The View from 5,000 Feet – The Author’s Themes & Motifs, Luke e.g.,
Bringing Compassion and Mercy to Those Deprived of It
Developing a New Community, Giving People a New Beginning:
New Disciples Being (Re)made
Kingdom of God Being Established
Remaking and Pulverizing Paradigms
Establishing His Authority
Restoring the Covenants…and More
4) The View from Ground Level – Specific Context for the Passage
a) Where are We? A Geography Question with Implications
b) What Happened Before? – A History Question with Implications since the past is always the prologue to the present passage.
c) What Cultural Clues are We Given? – More Implications
d) Any Literary Issues? – Parallelisms, Idioms, Remez & Word Meanings. What teaching cluster (pericope) might this be a part of?
5) Visual Context: What Does the Site/Surrounding Area Look Like?
Proximities, Sight Lines, Terrain, Soil, Rainfall, etc.
6) Restoring the Narrative by Integrating all the Contextual Pieces
Expanded Insights, Applications and Meaning – Don’t Forget the “Bermuda Triangle of the Soul” Themes as You Retell the “Familiar” Story.
What other contextual resources are available?
What are Some Other Resources That I Can Use to Expand My Understanding of Biblical Context?
The answer to this question is harder than you might think. Part of the problem is that many Biblical experts tend to be experts in only one area of Biblical context, not the 15 or so areas of context that need to be integrated to recreate the whole picture. As a result, you can find good sources for Biblical Archaeology, other good sources for Biblical history, and similar sources for other aspects of context, e.g., language, culture, literary form, geography, etc. But few take all these contextual primary sources and then integrate them into a cohesive contextual picture. That’s (in part) why Preserving Bible Times feels the calling to do what it does. That is not to say that there are not helpful resources available to help teachers and pastors expand their contextual understanding of Scripture, because there certainly are. Some of the resources that the PBT team draws upon, in addition to our own contextual resources, would include the following:
PRIMARY SOURCES
Danby, Herbert. The Mishna Translated from the Hebrew with Introduction and Brief Explanatory Notes. London: Oxford University Press, 1933
Josephus. The Works of Josephus. Trans. William Whiston, Peabody, Massachusetts, Harvard University Press, 1953
Pritchard, James B., ed. The Ancient Near East Texts Relating to the Old Testament, Princeton: Princeton University, 1969.
COMMENTARIES ON PRIMARY RESOURCES
Classic Works
Edersheim, Alfred. The Life and Times of Jesus The MESSIAH, MacDonald Publishing Company, undated.
Jeremias, Joachim. Jerusalem in the Time of Jesus, 1st American Ed., Fortress Press, Philadelphia, 1969.
Edersheim, Alfred. The Temple. Its Ministry and Services as they were at the Time of Jesus Christ, Kregel Publications, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1997.
Archeology Resources
Finegan, Jack. The Archeology of the New Testament, Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ, revised in 1992.
Murphy-O’Connor, Jerome. The Holyland: An Oxford Archaeological Guide, Oxford University Press, Oxford, England, Fifth Edition, 2008.
Contextual Restoration Commentary on the Gospel of Luke (Superb)
Green, Joel B. The Gospel of Luke, The New International Commentary on the New Testament. Eerdmans, Grand Rapids, MI, 1997
Contextual Restoration Commentary on John and the Passion of Jesus (Excellent)
Boice, James Montgomery. The Gospel of John, An Expositional Commentary, Volumes 1- 5, Baker Book House, Grand Rapids, MI, 1999
Jewish Roots of the Christian Faith
Wilson, Marvin O. Our Father Abraham (Eerdmans, Grand Rapids, MI 1989)
The Jewishness of Jesus
Tverberg, Lois and Spangler, Ann. Sitting at the Feet of Rabbi Jesus (Zondervan, Grand Rapids, MI. 2009)
EXPANDED TREATMENTS AND ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Middle Eastern Perspectives
Snodgrass, Klyne. Stories with Intent: A Comprehensive Guide to the Parables of Jesus, Eerdmans, Grand Rapids, 2008.
Bailey, Kenneth. The Cross and the Prodigal, Concordia, St. Louis, 1973
Bailey, Kenneth. Poet & Peasant and Through Peasant Eyes (Two Volumes in One), Eerdmans, Grand Rapids, 1983.
Bailey, Kenneth. Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes, Intervarsity Press, Downers Grove, IL, 2008.
Burge, Gary. The Bible and the Land, Zondervan, Grand Rapids, 2009.
Burge, Gary. Jesus, The Middle Eastern Storyteller, Zondervan, Grand Rapids, 2009.
Greenwold, Doug. Encounters with Jesus: The Rest of Their Stories, Bible-in-Context Ministries, Columbia, Maryland, 2008. (Available from Preserving Bible Times)
Greenwold, Doug, Those Prodigal Sons, Bible-in-Context Ministries, Columbia, Maryland, 2014. (Available from Preserving Bible Times).
Greenwold, Doug, That Good Samaritan, Bible-in-Context Ministries, Columbia, Maryland, 2013. (Available from Preserving Bible Times)
Greenwold, Doug, Becoming a Judean Shepherd, Bible-in-Context Ministries, Columbia, Maryland, 2013. (Available from Preserving Bible Times)
Greenwold, Doug. The Rest of the Story: A Closer Look at Familiar Passages, Bible-in-Context Ministries, Columbia, Maryland, 2007. (Available from Preserving Bible Times)
Greenwold, Doug. Making Disciples Jesus’ Way: Wisdom We Have Missed, Bible-in-Context Ministries, Columbia, Maryland, 2005. A contextual study of the what, when and how Jesus remade the Twelve with an emphasis on what’s missing in Western discipleship today. (Available from Preserving Bible Times)
Greenwold, Doug. Zechariah and Elizabeth: Persistent Faith in a Faithful God, Bible-in-Context Ministries, Rockville, Maryland, 2004. A refreshing contextual study of Luke 1 that reflects on our own unforseen journeys and God’s loving purpose in it all. (Available from Preserving Bible Times)
Hansen, David. In Their Sandals: How His Followers Saw Jesus, Xulon Press, 2007.
Great Resource for the Gospels
Green, Joel B. et. al. Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels, InterVarsity Press, Downers Grove, IL, 1992.
Great Resource for Paul’s Letters
Hawthorne, Gerald and Ralph P. Martin et. al. Dictionary of Paul and His Letters, InterVarsity Press, Downers Grove, IL, 1993.
Bailey, Kenneth, Paul Through Mediterranean Eyes: Cultural Studies in I Corinthians, Intervarsity Press, Downers Grove, IL, 2011.
Great Expositions on the Prodigal Son
Nouwen, Henri. The Return of the Prodigal Son: A Story of Homecoming, Doubleday, New York, 1992.
Keller, Timothy. The Prodigal God, Dutton, New York, 2008.
MacArthur, John. A Tale of Two Sons, Thomas Nelson, Nashville, 2008.
Greenwold, Doug. Those Prodigal Sons: Two Lost Sons and Their Father’s Heart, Bible-in-Context Ministries, 2014. (Available from Preserving Bible Times)
Visual Resources
Martin, James C., et.al. A Visual Guide to Bible Events, Baker Books, Grand Rapids, 2009. (excellent for visualization of Bible places)
Martin, James C., et.al. A Visual Guide to Gospel Events, Baker Books, Grand Rapids, 2010. (excellent for visualization of Gospel passages)
Dowley, Tim. The Kregel Pictorial Guide to THE BIBLE, Kregel Publications, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 2000. (very nice)
Thompson, J.A. Handbook of Life in Bible Times, Intervarsity Press, Downers Grove, Ill., 1986.
Rainey, Anson and R. Steven Notley. The Sacred Bridge: Carta’s Atlas of the Biblical World, Carta, Jerusalem, 2005
Rittmeyer, Leen and Kathleen. The Ritual of the Temple in the Time of Christ, Carta, Jerusalem 2002. (excellent summary of Temple context with wonderful visuals and good concise copy taken from Edersheim’s book The Temple). Available from Preserving Bible Times.
Rittmeyer, Leen and Kathleen. From Sinai to Jerusalem: The Wanderings of the Holy Ark, Carta, Jerusalem, 2000. (visually rich overview of 1,000 years of the Old Testament from the perspective of the Arks movements). Available from Preserving Bible Times.
Richman, Chaim. The Holy Temple of Jerusalem, The Temple Institute, Carta, Jerusalem, 1997. (absolutely exquisite visuals of Herod’s Temple at the time of Jesus). Available from Preserving Bible Times.
Excellent Resources for Biblical Geography
Monson, James. Introduction to Biblical Geography: Region on the Run, Biblical Backgrounds, Rockford, IL. (best introduction to biblical geography and the best geography maps for getting oriented to biblical times). www.bibback.com
Monson, James. Geobasics in the Land of the Bible, Biblical Backgrounds, Rockford, IL. (good overview of biblical geography and getting oriented to the Land). www.bibback.com
Helpful Bibles
New American Standard Bible, Side Column Reference Edition, Foundation Publications, Anaheim, CA 1996 (very helpful for remez identification).
Archaeological Study Bible, Zondervan, Grand Rapids,Michigan, 2005
The NET Bible, First Edition, Published by The NET Bible Project, Dallas, Texas
Helpful Websites for Bible-in-Context Information
