Description: The primary focus of An Introduction to the New Testament is on what used to be called "special introduction" - that is, on historical questions dealing with authorship, date, sources, purpose, destination, and so forth. Several recent books devote more than this one does to literary form, rhetorical criticism, and historical parallels. The authors do not minimize the importance of such topics, and they have introduced them where they directly bear on the subject at hand. But they feel that these topics are better given extended treatment in courses on exegesis, especially the exegesis of particular books. There has been too much focus on these topics at the expense of traditional questions of "introduction", and this has tended to divorce the New Testament books from their historical settings. Although the emphasis in this book is on "special introduction", the authors have included a brief outline of each New Testament document, sometimes providing a rationale for the choices they have made. In each case they have provided a brief account of current studies on the book, and indicated something of the theological contribution that each New Testament document makes to the canon. Their ultimate concern is that new generations of students will gain a better grasp of the Word of God.

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