This authoritative volume brings together a team of world-class scholars to cover the full range of New Testament backgrounds in a concise, up-to-date, and comprehensive manner. This book bringing us to a new level of our knowledge about social, cultural and historical context of New Testament.

This is a great resource for Bible scholars and pastors who need more in depth information on the New Testament.
Thank you for an ARC copy of this book from the publisher and NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

This book is a collection of 62 academic essays on the ancient world leading up to, including, and after the New Testament period. One of the assumptions of this collection is that the NT was largely (or perhaps totally) written after the fall of Jerusalem in 70 A.D., so these essays covered a much broader period than I expected. Some essay authors stated that we don't know who really wrote the NT books and that prophecies were written by people who knew what happened but were pretending Jesus predicted them ahead of time. The Bible was treated as just another ancient document, not divinely inspired.

The essay authors usually tried to fit the NT writings into the surrounding ancient culture. As in, after talking about how a Roman or Greek would have written a letter, the author pointed out that NT letters had certain elements of a proper letter but were lacking others (like Paul was trying and failed to meet this formula). Another essay talked about Roman ideals of masculinity and how the NT writers tried to portray Jesus as a hypermasculine Roman ideal even though Jesus didn't seem to fit that ideal. I felt like the scholars were trying too hard to fit the NT into Roman culture rather than acknowledging how Jewish culture was unique, and maybe the Jews didn't want to fit in completely with Roman ideals and culture.

Since the NT wasn't divinely-inspired truth about God, one essay tried to figure out why people from other cultures might add Jesus to the gods they worshipped or even give up their other gods. What social benefit might they have received? Most of the essays hardly referenced the actual NT but were on topics relating to that general time period. For example, one essay simply gave an overview of Greek and Roman schools of thought. The essays weren't intended to help a student of the Bible better understand the NT in its Jewish context but usually gave an overview of various topics, mostly focused on Roman culture. The essays were very academic in writing style, with references to their sources cited in the text and a list of sources at the end of each essay. While I learned more about Roman culture than I'd previously known, I didn't feel like I'd gained any true insights into the NT.

At more than 500 pages, and more than 60 chapters, this is a veritable feast of contextual information about the first century New Testament world.

Among the interesting bits of information we learn, for example, that Mark’s Jesus never enters cities, whereas Luke’s Jesus does (Chp.7). That isn’t necessarily a disagreement between the gospel writers, but it is a stark indication of how the gospel writers had very different interests and foci.

In some places the chapters were arguably a little too informative. In Chapter 4 for example, the philosophical background to the New Testament is explained with references to Neoplatonists like Plotinus, and to Marcus Aurelius. However, both of those philosophers lived centuries after the New Testament. Are they really relevant? This chapter read a little like a generic encyclopedia entry on ‘Ancient Philosophy’, rather than one crafted for a book about the background to the New Testament.

However, other chapters were much better focused. Chapter 44 on Sacrifice was particularly well written, with a sharp focus on the specifically New Testament issues. It was good to see that it took care to avoid potentially irrelevant references to the wider sacrificial cults which were contemporaneous.

While I enjoyed the information which the book provided, I was a little disappointed by some of the issues which it didn’t cover. For example, several of the chapters (such as chapter 13) noted that there were multiple versions of Hebrew scriptural texts available in the New Testament era. Ancient Christians (and for that matter, the Qumran community) seem to have been happy to read and cite differing versions of scripture alongside each other. That seems to be a markedly different attitude than we find in modern scholars who worry about establishing the precise textual authenticity of each piece of Scripture. Was there a different mindset in relation to Scripture in the New Testament era? Questions like that are important, and may have significant implications for modern Christians.

Another issue is pseudepigraphia (ie documents which are not written by the people they claim to be written by). This was mentioned in passing in a few chapters. But I was surprised that there wasn’t a more substantial discussion of the issue. Some modern scholars are prepared to dismiss half the Pauline epistles as not authentic (ie as written by other people ‘pretending’ to be Paul). Many scholars treat the Petrine epistles similarly, yet they claim to be eye witness testimony and they have been cited down the centuries as evidence for scriptural claims. Are they ‘fake’ documents making ‘dishonest’ claims? These kinds of questions raise serious issues for some modern Christians, so I would have welcomed a chapter exploring them.

Overall, this is definitely an informative book, and I enjoyed reading some of the articles. I particularly appreciated the stylistic approach of short articles which can be dipped into and read in any order. That makes this a potentially useful reference resource for preachers, teachers and anyone wanting to expand their knowledge of the wider New Testament world.

(These are honest comments on a (pre-publication) version of the text, which was kindly provided free by the publisher, for the purpose of writing a review).

This is a phenomenal reference and a worthy addition to your reference shelf of New Testament Background studies. This volume is a scholarly work and readers must be aware of that going into it. Anyone can read and gain valuable insight but it is written in an academic style. The author’s stated goal is to bring together “a team of world-class scholars to cover the full range of New Testament backgrounds studies in a concise, up-to-date, and comprehensive manner. Drawing on the expertise of specialists in the areas of archaeological, historical, and biblical studies, this book provides concise treatments of a wide breadth of topics. The author achieves his objective in a series of sixty-two scholarly essays.

#BehindtheScenesoftheNewTestament #NetGalley.

Discover the intricate world surrounding the New Testament like never before! This remarkable volume, Behind the Scenes of the New Testament, offers an unprecedented deep dive into the cultural, social, and historical tapestry that shaped the earliest Christian writings. For any serious student of biblical studies or anyone eager to enrich their understanding of scripture, this book is indispensable. Every page unveils nuanced perspectives that can transform familiar texts, grounding theological insights in the rich landscapes, customs, and philosophies of the first century. This comprehensive guide doesn’t just narrate historical details; it actively brings the New Testament world to life, allowing readers to see these canonical writings through the eyes of those who first encountered them. A must-read for biblical scholars, teachers, and lay readers alike, Behind the Scenes of the New Testament is an essential resource for anyone dedicated to a more authentic and profound understanding of the New Testament.