The Theology of the Letters of James, Peter, and Jude (New Testament Theology)

203 Pages·1994·24.84 MB·English

by  Andrew Chester

mmom
OF JdMPS,
AND JUDE
ANDREW CHESTER
RALPH P. MARTIN
b
The lcttcn oTJams, Peter, and Jude number among the
moat nglatcd pam d the New Tatammt. The authon
d this ttudv awe that lhc lctten in auntion am morr
thmlogicaliy si&ificant than is often cdnsidercd the cau,
and have a dirtinruve role to play in contemporary dir-
euuion of Christian faith. Andrew Chnrcr sets Jamn in
context and dirusscs itr main thcmn: achatology, faith
and works, ethical and social eaching; and (to a lmcr
crtrnt , law, xtrdom. human natum, mtnl%tn.( ;d,a nd
Chntt. H.r addmsn the pmhlcmr that Jamn has ken
srm to m.. in rrlatnon to Paul. br rhr canon and
cohcmnec of the New Tntamcnt, and points ro the sig-
nificance of James for fhc pmnt day, crpecially in iu
attack on the rich and powcrful and iu demands for faith
to k lived out in everyday life. Ralph P. Mart~nin turn
shows how Jude and I and 2 Pctcr give insight into
.lcwish Christianity in its earlint development; how the
Chrkttan movrmmt wasundrntmd man outlynnq region
uf shr empar.. and how thc ~nrt.apo.tol~cchurchu t~l~rrd
the mcmurv of Pctrr for itr practical nerds Thr rnulr~ng
picture conrtitutes an crpcrt and long-ovcrduc treatment
of thew lctten as valuable theological documents in their
own right.

NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY
General Editor: Jam.- D. G. Dunn,
Lightfoot Professor of Divinity, Univenity of Durham
The theology of the letten ofJames, Peter, and Jude
This serin pmvider a programmatic survey of the indi-
vidual writings ofthe New Testament. It aims to remedy
thc ddicicncy ofavailable published material, which has
tended to concentrate on historical, extual, grammati-
cal, and literaryiarunat thecxpcnacolrhc theology, or to
lmosae tdiisdti sntcutidvien eomfo'h~ahaecsT ohfm inlodgivyi douf aPl awulr'i tainAn itnh es wiiktcc-.
New Tcstsmcnt specialists hcrc write at greater length
than is usually pmriblc in the intmductions tocommcnta-
ricr or as part or other Ncw Testament thmlogin, and
explore the thmlogical theme and iruues of their chosen
books without being tied to a mmmcntary format, or to a
thematic structure drawn fmm elsewhere. When com-
plete, the scrin will cover all the New Testament
writings, and will thus provide an attractive, and timely,
range of texts around which eouncr can be dcvclopcd.
THE THEOLOGY OF THE
LETTERS OF JAMES,
PETER, AND JUDE
ANDREW CHESTER
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RALPH P. MARTIN
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Tlansremd to digital printing 1999
Contents
Edttor'i preface
Lbt of abbreuiations
1 THE THEOLOGY OF JAMES
Andrew Chesln
Introduction
I James: background and context
I James: theolop).
3 James and the New Testament
q James: significance for today
List ofrtjierences 61
I1 THE THEOLOGY OF JUDE, I PETER, AND 2 PETER
Ralph P. Martin
5 Jude
6 r Peter
7 2 Peter
Select btblzogruphy
Index for James
Index for 3udc
Index for I Peter
Index for 2 Peter

Editor's preface
Although the NmT estament is usually taught within Depart-
ments or Schools or Facultia of Thmlo-a.v /Divinit.v /Reli-a ion.
theological study of the individual Nml 'mtamrnt writinp is
ohrn minimal or at k tp atchy. Thc masons for this arc not
hard to discern.
For one thing, the traditional style ofstudying a New Testa-
ment document is by means ofstraight exegesis, often vet= by
verse. Theological concerns jostle with interesting historical,
textual, grammatical and literary issues, onen at the cost of the
theological. Such cxgesis is usually very time-consuming, so
that only one or two key writings can be treated in any depth
within a crowded thm-year syllabus.
For another, there is a marked lack of suitable textboob
mund which courses could be developed. Commentaries arc
likely to lose theological comment within a mas ofothcr detail
in the same way as exegetical lectures. The section on the
thealagyofadocument in the Intmduction to a commentary is
oncn very briefand may do little more than pick out elements
within the writing under a sequence of headings drawn fmm
systematic theology. Excunusco usually deal with only one or
two rrlccted topin. Likewisc larger works on New Tcrtament
Thmlogy usually treat Paul's lcttm as a whole and, having
devoted the great bulk of their space to Jesus, Paul, and John,
can spare only a few pagen for others.
In consequence. there is little incentive on the Dan of
teacher or siudcnt to engage with a particular Nm~ dtament
document, and students have to be content with a general
overview, at best complemented by indepth study of (patisof)