Midterm

Question 1

Prepare a brief essay on the Abrahamic Covenant and its fulfillment.

Answer 1

The Abrahamic Covenant was a covenant made between God and Abraham that was a further unfolding of the Covenant of Grace initially given to Adam in the Garden immediately following the Fall (Gen 3:15). As with all covenants, there were promises of blessing for covenantal obedience and promises of cursing for covenantal disobedience. God requires perfect, person, and perpetual obedience, but also knew of the frailty of the human condition, so typologically pointed to Christ as the One who would bear the wrath of God for our covenantal disobedience (Gen 15:12-18). Ultimately, all the promises of the Abrahamic Covenant find their fulfillment in Christ. These promises include the promise of the offspring of Abraham being Christ (Gal 3:16; cf. Gen 22:18), the promise of land that ultimately points to the new heavens and earth (Gen 17:8; Rev 21:1-3), the promise of the elect seed in Christ (Gen 17:7; Gal 3:29), and the promise of the triumphant kingdom of Christ (Gen 22:17; 1 Cor 15:23-27). As the gospel was first preached to Abraham, the rest of the Scriptures further extends and expands the gospel, and continues to advance throughout all the peoples, tribes, and tongues on the earth to this day (Gal 3:8; cf. Gen 12:3).

Question 2

Prepare a brief essay on the Second Person of the Trinity being the manifested Jehovah of the Old Testament.

Answer 2

Naming the manifested Jehovah of the Old Testament as the Second Person of the Trinity is probably more nuanced than my current understanding allows, but it is essentially a means of proving the deity of Jesus. Scripture demonstrates over and again that Jesus is God. For instance, Jesus poured out the Spirit on the Day of Pentecost as prophesied in Joel 2:27, 28 (cf. Acts 2:16-21), Jesus is the λόγος manifested in the flesh (John 1:1-5), the Creator of the heavens and earth (John 1:3; Col 1:16; Ex 31:17; Isa 40:28; Jonah 1:9), the great “I AM” (John 6:35; 8:12; 10:9; 10:11-14; 11:25; 14:6; 15:1-5), and that Isaiah saw the glory of Christ (John 12:39-41; cf. Isa 6:10). Furthermore, Jesus declared that no one has ever seen God the Father (John 1:18); yet Jehovah appeared to Abraham (Gen 18:1), Isaac (Gen 26:2), Jacob (Gen 28:13), and Moses (Ex 3:2). Furthermore, there are clear distinctions between the Persons of the Trinity in the Old Testament (Ps 110:1-3; Zech 2:10, 11; Ps 16:5-10; Isa 48:13-16). All this evidence leans heavily in the direction of the claim that the Second Person of the Trinity is the manifested Jehovah of the Old Testament.

Question 3

Be prepared to present the outline of the Bible given in class.

Answer 3

A Central Person: Christ
A Central Plan: Redemption (the fulfillment of the Covenant of Grace)
A Central Program: The Kingdom

I. The OT: The Administration of the Covenant of Grace Through Jehovah’s Redemptive Kingdom
A. The Pentateuch: The Foundation and Constitution of the Kingdom
B. The Historical Books: The Progression and Suspension of the Kingdom
C. The Poetic Books: The Veneration and Adoration of the King
D. The Prophetic Books: The Prediction and Expectation of the Coming King and His Kingdom

II. The NT: The Administration of the Covenant of Grace Through Jesus’ Redemptive Kingdom
A. The Gospels: The Proclamation and Description of the King and His Kingdom
B. The Book of Acts: The Multiplication and Expansion of His Kingdom
C. The Epistles: The Interpretation and Application of the King
D. The Book of Revelation: The Dominion of the King and the Consummation of the Kingdom

Question 4

What are the primary characteristics of the 1st copies of the NT books?

Answer 4

Written with all capital letters, no spacing between words, and little or no punctuation.

Question 5

Prepare a definition of what Carson and Moo call thoroughgoing eclecticism and include the two types of internal evidence (C&M, p.30).

Answer 5

Eclecticism, when it comes to textual criticism, simply means to choose which texts they perceive to be the best fit once all the evidence is carefully evaluated. Thoroughgoing eclecticism is a minority group that discounts all external evidence (manuscripts or groups of manuscripts) and focuses all their attention on the internal evidence. The internal evidences are 1) intrinsic probability (what the author is likely to have written as judged by his observed proclivities) and 2) transcriptional probability (what copyists were likely to have put down, whether in an intentional or an unintentional change).

Question 6

Who published the first Greek NT?

Answer 6

Erasmus (1516)

Question 7

Who did the KJV translators make extensive use of?

Answer 7

Beza’s 1588-9 and 1598 editions of the Greek NT.

Question 8

Which edition of Stephanus was the Textus Receptus?

Answer 8

3rd edition (1550)

Question 9

Which texts did Westcott and Hort claim to be the freest from corruption?

Answer 9

Codex Vaticanus (B) and Codex Sinaiticus

Question 10

Which text did Westcott and Hort claim to be closest to the originals?

Answer 10

Codex Vaticanus (B)

Question 11

Who was the contemporary of Westcott and Hort and was critical of their views?

Answer 11

John W. Burgon

Question 12

Who were the defenders of the Majority Text?

Answer 12

Wilbur N. Pickering, Zane C. Hodges, Harry A. Sturtz, and Maurice Robinson

Question 13

What did the Two-Source Hypothesis hold?

Answer 13

Matthew and Luke independently used Mark and “Q”

Question 14

Where does “Q” come from?

Answer 14

The German word quelle meaning “source”

Question 15

What is “Q” used to designate?

Answer 15

“a lost collection of Jesus’ sayings”

Question 16

What does sitz im leben mean?

Answer 16

“situation in life”

Question 17

What are the basic differences between Form Criticism and Redaction Criticism?

Answer 17

Form Criticism: studies individual literary units, focuses on the common material, seeks the theology of the Church, views the Evangelist as a compiler
Redactions Criticism: studies each Gospel as a whole, focuses on the distinct material, seeks the theology of the Evangelist, views the Evangelist as a theologian

Question 18

What are the 3 primary principles which have guided historical criticism?

Answer 18

The principle of methodological doubt, the principle of analogy, and the principle of correlation

Question 19

What are the differences between a radical and a liberal?

Answer 19

Radical: Christian community is the creative force, historical Jesus is unimportant, only the message of “Jesus” important, and the entire NT is mythological
Liberal: Jesus is creative force in Christianity, keen interest in historical Jesus, high religious view of Jesus & his teaching, and moralistic and non-eschatological Jesus

Question 20

Be prepared to give evidence that Jesus primarily preached and taught in Aramaic.

Answer 20

Acts 1:19 says, “in their own language, Akel Dama, that is, Field of Blood.” The Aramaic transliteration of “Akel Dama” is the strongest evidence that the primary language of the Jews in Israel was Aramaic. But what about Jesus? Paul’s conversion, recounted in Acts 26:14, says that Jesus spoke to him “in the Hebrew language.” It is commonly understood that the Hebrew language here is Aramaic. Furthermore, there are a number of examples Jesus’ use of Aramaic that were transliterated into the Greek NT. For instance, the Jesus’ use of “Raca” is an Aramaic transliteration. Also, Matthew 10:5, 6 states that Jesus’ earthly ministry was primarily to the “lost sheep of the house of Israel.” If the common language of the Jews was Aramaic and there are a number of specific examples of Jesus speaking Aramaic, it would be a safe assumption that Jesus primarily spoke and taught in Aramaic. This is important when it comes to some of the slight differences in accounts between the Gospels. If the Gospels are Greek translations of Jesus’ teaching in Aramaic, there would necessarily be slight differences in the four Gospel accounts.

Question 21

Prepare a brief essay on the Jewish emphasis of Matthew’s Gospel (Dyer, pp. 1-2).

Answer 21

Matthew’s original audience was addressed primarily or exclusively to Jews. Evidence of this is fivefold: the genealogy at the beginning of Matthew emphasizes that Jesus came from the line of Judah, there is an assumption of knowledge of the Old Testament with the ceremonial washings, there is an emphasis on the kingdom, Jesus is called “Son of David” 9 times, and Matthew quotes or alludes to the Old Testament around 65 times.

Question 22

Be prepared to explain the meanings of the two Greek words for “temple.”

Answer 22

The two Greek words translated “temple” in the NT are ἱερόν and ναός. The first word, ἱερόν, refers to the building and the temple area. The second word, ναός, refers to the inner sanctuary of the temple.

Question 23

Be prepared to present the chart on the two types of forgiveness in the Bible.

Answer 23

Judicial Forgiveness: 1) Given by God as our Judge (Heb 12:23), 2) Based on the sacrifice of Jesus (Rom 3:24), 3) Not repeated (Ps 103:12), 4) Appropriated by faith (Gen 15:6; Rom 5:1), 5) Not achieved by animal sacrifices (Heb 10:4), 6) Brings us into fellowship with God (Rom 5:1, 2), 7) Keeps us from being separated from God in Hell (Rev 20:11-15), 8) Related to justification (being declared righteous)
Paternal Forgiveness: 1) Given by God as our Father (Luke 11:2, 4), 2) Based on the sacrifice of Jesus (1 John 1:7-9), 3) Repeated (1 John 1:9, 10), 4) Appropriated by confession (Lev 5:5; 1 John 1:9), 5) Achieved by animal sacrifices (Lev 5:5, 10; 16:21), 6) Restores us to fellowship with God (1 John 1:3-9), 7) Keeps us from being separated from God on earth (Ps 66:18), 8) Related to sanctification (being made righteous)

Question 24

Be prepared to present the parallels in Matthew with the Exodus given in class.

Answer 24

Exodus: 1) The king of Egypt threatened the deliverer’s life (Ex 1:8-22), 2) Moses returned to his native country after the death of a hostile king (Ex 2:23-4:20), 3) Moses and Israel were called out of Egypt, 4) Moses and Israel passed through the Red Sea (Ex 14:22-29; 1 Cor 10:1, 2), 5) Moses and Israel were in the wilderness 40 years, 6) God’s law was given through Moses (Ex 20)
Matthew: 1) The king of Israel threatened the Deliverer’s life (Matt 2:13-18), 2) Jesus returned to His native country after the death of a hostile king (Matt 2:19-22), 3) Jesus was called out of Egypt (Matt 2:15; cf. Hos 11:1), 4) Jesus was baptized by John (Matt 3:13-17), 5) Jesus was in the wilderness for 40 days
(Matt 4: 1-11), 6) God’s law was expounded by Jesus
(Matt 5:17-48)

Question 25

Be prepared to present Ridderbos’ understanding of the fourth Beatitude, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness” (p. 190-191).

Answer 25

“It is true that many writers think of such righteousness as a subjective agreement with God’s demand, and explain ‘hunger’ and ‘mourn’ as sorrow about moral imperfection.” This interpretation of the fourth Beatitude must be rejected. The righteousness here should also not be understood in the Pauline sense of forensic righteousness. Positively, the righteousness in the fourth Beatitude is connected to the poor and meek, and Christ’s kingly justice will one day save and deliver the oppressed and outcasts. This righteousness is in contradistinction to those who think they are socially superior because of their lineage. It is those who “hunger” and “thirst” for righteousness who long for God’s redemption of His people “from the power of oppression and injustice that is continued for the present.”

Question 26

Prepare a summary of the thematic structure of Matthew’s Gospel.

Answer 26

The purpose of the thematic structure of Matthew’s Gospel is to demonstrate how Jesus, the King of the Jews, became King of the universe. Matthew’s Gospel narrative shows how Jesus was initially the King of the Jews, then established His authority, was then rejected by His people, which resulted in His universal dominion.

Question 27

Be prepared to present evidence that Peter is the rock in Matthew 16.

Answer 27

The two Protestant interpretations of Matthew 16:18 are either 1) Jesus is referring to Himself as the “Rock” or 2) the “rock” is referring to Peter’s confession that Jesus is the Christ. However, the emphatic language used in Matthew 16:16-20 is drawing the reader’s attention to Peter. Also, the play on words in the Greek text points the read to Peter being the “rock” in the singular, not collectively to the disciples. An alternative interpretation of this text could read: “You are Cephas (Rock) and upon this cephas (rock) I will build my church.” Therefore, it is not wrong to assert that Peter is the “Rock” and upon his confession (“rock”), Christ will build His church. This played out in subsequent history with Peter being a leader among the disciples as the one who was chosen to preach on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2).

Question 28

Be prepared to present characteristics of Mark’s Gospel (Dyer, p. 4).

Answer 28

Mark was most likely written to a Roman audience as it was a book emphasizing Jesus’ actions and teachings. Mark also explains Jewish customs and interprets Aramaic phrases. Unique to Mark, this Gospel gives special attention to Jesus’ emotions of compassion, severity, anger, sorrow, tenderness, and love, refers to Peter by name in several parallel accounts found in the other Gospels, and, even though Mark is the shortest Gospel, frequently includes more details in comparison with the other Gospels.

Question 29

Prepare a brief essay on Mark’s presentation of Jesus as the Servant of Jehovah.

Answer 29

In the Gospel attributed to his name, Mark presents Jesus as the Servant of Jehovah. Jesus, as the Messiah and the Son of God, is the Servant of Jehovah that is found in the book of Isaiah. This can be seen under three separate headings: the service, suffering and success of the Servant. First, the service of the Servant (Mark 1-13). Mark 10:45, the key verse of the entire Gospel, shows to emphasize that Jesus did not come to be served, but to serve. The backdrop of this verse is Isaiah 53, especially verses four and five. Second, the suffering of the Servant (Mark 14:1-15:41). Mark’s Gospel contains more on Jesus’ passion than the other Synoptics. Third, the success of the Servant (Mark 15:42-16:8). This is seen first at Jesus’ burial with Joseph of Arimathea, the improbable disciple. Also, it is seen in Jesus’ resurrection, ascension, and continuing mission throughout this world.

Question 30

Be prepared to explain what is meant by a Markan sandwich and to give an example.

Answer 30

A Markan sandwich is when Mark begins an account, then inserts another account, then resumes the first account. The middle account that ties the beginning and ending account together is called the “toothpick.” An example of a Markan sandwich is Mark 2:1-10 with the healing of the paralytic. A. Healing of Paralytic (2:1-5a). B. Authority to Forgive Sin (2:5b-10a). C. Healing of the Paralytic (2:10b-12). Toothpick: “he says to the paralytic” (2:5b) and “he says to the paralytic” (2:10b).

Question 31

Prepare an essay on the ending of Mark’s Gospel.

Answer 31

I do not believe the long ending of Mark is original and much of my argument is derived from a lecture given by Dr. Michael Kruger. First, there must be a clear distinction that this debate is not over the doctrine of inerrancy. Inerrancy deals with whether what the authors of Scripture said is true. This debate is about whether Mark said Mark 16:9-20 or not. Therefore, stating the long ending is not attributed to Mark should in no way diminish our confidence in the reliability of Scripture. Second, God did not inspire the copyists of the manuscripts, only the authors themselves. This would account for the plethora of scribal variations and, in this case, the added ending in Mark. Looking at the external evidence for the long ending, it is true that 95% of manuscripts include the long ending; however, a vast majority of these manuscripts are from the 10th century or later. Additionally, the quality of the manuscripts should be considered alongside the sheer number of manuscripts. When weighing the quality of the manuscript, date plays a huge factor. The earliest manuscripts do not have the long ending. In fact, the earliest manuscripts that contain the ending of Mark are from the 4th century and do not have the long ending (Codex Vaticanus and Codex Sinaiticus). Furthermore, the traditional long ending is not the only alternative ending to Mark. As stated in the ESV footnotes, there are several versions of the long ending that point to the scribal uncertainty of where and how Mark ended his Gospel. Moreover, many of the Medieval manuscripts have margin notes documenting the scribal doubt that the long ending is original to Mark. All this evidence is backed up by the early Patristic fathers. For instance, Eusebius in the 4th century stated Mark ended with the words “they were afraid” (Mark 16:8). Also, Jerome in the 5th century said almost all the Greek codices did not include the long ending. For myself, this evidence is insurmountable. The long ending was certainly an early addition, possibly as early as 125 A.D. (allusions to Mark 16:20 by Justin Martyr and Irenaeus), but it is not original to Mark. Therefore, I will not preach on these verses because I do not believe they are inspired by the Holy Spirit.