Stanley Porter and Bryan Dyer - Origins of New Testament Christology

OnScript

Episode: Who is this man? Questions about Jesus are fascinating and perennial. Stanley Porter and Bryan Dyer team up to explore how the New Testament deployed diverse traditions--Jesus as passover lamb, savior, prophet, last Adam, messiah, and many others--in order to answer foundational questions about Jesus. Discover how background studies can enhance Jesus and the New Testament rather than reduce them. Co-hosted by Matt Bates.

The Book: Stanley E. Porter and Bryan R. Dyer, Origins of New Testament Christology: An Introduction to the Traditions and Titles Applied to Jesus (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2023). The early followers of Jesus drew from Jewish and Greco-Roman traditions and titles to help them understand and articulate who Jesus was. This book opens a window into the Christology of the first century by helping readers understand the eleven most significant titles for Jesus in the New Testament: Lord, Son of Man, Messiah, Prophet, Suffering Servant, Son of God, Last Adam, Passover Lamb, Savior, Word, and High Priest. The authors trace the history of each title in the Old Testament, Second Temple literature, and Greco-Roman literature and look at the context in which the New Testament writers retrieved these traditions to communicate their understanding of Christ. The result is a robust portrait that is closely tied to the sacred traditions of Israel and beyond that took on new significance in light of Jesus Christ. This accessible and up-to-date exegetical study defends an early "high" Christology and argues that the titles of Jesus invariably point to an understanding of Jesus as God. In the process, it will help readers appreciate the biblical witness to the person of Jesus. (Publisher's description).

Stanley Porter has a number of different titles at McMaster Divinity College (Hamilton, Ontario). Stan is the President and Dean, Professor of New Testament, and Roy A. Hope Chair in Christian Worldview. He has written and edited many books. Some of his most well-known work pertains to linguistics with respect to NT Greek.

Bryan Dyer holds a PhD from McMaster Divinity College in New Testament and is acquisitions editor at Baker Academic. Bryan is also a part-time faculty member of religion at Calvin University in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He is the co-editor of numerous volumes and the author of a monograph on Hebrews, Suffering in the Face of Death (T&T Clark).

OnScript's Review: The Christology of the New Testament relates to its Jewish and Greco-Roman environment in complex ways. Some studies reduce Jesus in light of his background. Porter and Dyer have done the opposite. As they uncover each facet, an ever richer portrait of Jesus emerges. Students and scholars alike will appreciate its clarity, organization, up-to-date scholarship, and wisdom. -- Matthew W. Bates, author of The Birth of the Trinity; Professor of Theology, Quincy University

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