Winter 2019/Pasadena

NT527/827

Givens

NT527/827: CRITICAL ISSUES IN MATTHEW (4 Units: 183 hours/6 Units: 390 hours). Tommy Givens.

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DESCRIPTION: This six-unit CATS seminar, open also to a limited number of master’s students by professor’s approval, consists of a detailed exegetical study of the narrative of Matthew, including an examination of controversial theological, literary, and historical issues that bear upon its interpretation. Those issues include Matthew’s testimony about the law, the nature of divine judgment in Christological key, the import of Old Testament passages, and the force of Matthew’s Gospel relative to the diverse Jewish community of the time of its composition.

LEARNING OUTCOMES: Students who successfully complete this course will have demonstrated (1) a fundamental literary knowledge of the Gospel of Matthew, (2) a competent acquaintance with a range of theological and historical matters that bear upon the interpretation of the whole of Matthew and its parts, (3) advanced skill in the interpretation of particular passages of Matthew, (4) substantive and critical engagement with contemporary scholarship, and (5) skillful attention to the stakes of the interpretation of Matthew with respect to matters of Christian practice, especially justice.

COURSE FORMAT: This class meets once per week for three-hour sessions for a total of 30 hours of classroom instruction for lecture and discussion. Students taking NT527 will also complete 10 hours of directed learning activities for a total of 40 instructional hours. Class time will include review of weekly exegetical work and include student presentations on particular passages in Matthew and the critical issues that bear on their interpretation.

REQUIRED READING: For doctoral students, 2500 pages. For master’s students, 1200 pages from the following:

Course Reader, including articles by Michael Joseph Brown, Shaye Cohen, Musa Dube, Frances Gench, Josephus, Amy Jill Levine, Dorothy Jean Weaver, Walter Wilson, and others. [405 pp.]

Allison, Dale C. Studies in Matthew. Baker Academic, 2012. ISBN: 978-0801049132, Pub. Price $34.00. Available as an e-book from the Fuller Library [264 pp. assigned].

Basser, Herbert and Marsha B. Cohen. The Gospel of Matthew and Judaic Traditions: A Relevance-based Commentary. Brill, 2015. ISBN: 978-9004291799, Pub. Price $322 [120 pp. assigned]. Available as an e-book from the Fuller Library.

Davies, W. D. and D. C. Allison. Matthew. 3 vols. ICC. T & T Clark, 2004, 2004, 2004. ISBN: 978-0567083555, 978-0567083654, and 978-0567083753, Pub. Price $60 each [540 total pp. assigned]

Givens, Tommy. Light in the Shadow of Darkness. Unpublished manuscript. [180 pp. assigned]

Hatina, Thomas. Biblical Interpretation in Early Christian Gospels, Vol. 2: The Gospel of Matthew. T & T Clark, 2008. ISBN: 978-0567041944, Pub. Price $148 [103 pp. assigned]. Available as an e-book from the Fuller Library.

Hays, Richard. Echoes of Scripture in the Gospels. Baylor University Press, 2017. ISBN: 978-1481305242, Pub. Price $34.95 [130 pp. assigned]

Huizenga, Leroy Andrew. The New Isaac: Tradition and Intertextuality in the Gospel of Matthew. Brill, 2012. ISBN: 978-9004239722, Pub. Price $53 [133 pp. assigned]. Available as an e-book from the Fuller Library.

Kupp, David D. Matthew’s Emmanuel: Divine Presence and God’s People in the First Gospel. Cambridge, 2005. ISBN: 978-0521020657, Pub. Price $56. [87 pp. assigned]. Available as an e-book from the Fuller Library.

Pennington, Jonathan T. Heaven and Earth in the Gospel of Matthew. Baker Academic, 2009. ISBN: 978-0801037283, Pub. Price $44 [137 pp. assigned]. Available as an e-book from the Fuller Library.

Riches, John K. and David Sim (eds). The Gospel of Matthew in Its Roman Imperial Context. T & T Clark, 2005. ISBN: 978-0567084583, Pub. Price $74.95 [78 pp. assigned]. Available as an e-book from the Fuller Library.

Sider Hamilton, Catherine. The Death of Jesus in Matthew: Innocent Blood and the End of Exile. Cambridge, 2017. ISBN: 978-1107110519, Pub. Price $99.99 [236 pp. assigned]. Available as an e-book from the Fuller Library.

Weren, Wilhelmus J. C. Studies in Matthew’s Gospel: Literary Design, Intertextuality, and Social Setting. Brill, 2014. ISBN: 978-9004254954, Pub. Price $174 [87 pp. assigned]. Available as an e-book from the Fuller Library.

RECOMMENDED READING: See course syllabus.

ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENT:

1. Participation in all seminar meetings [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1-5] [30 hours for all levels].
2. Assigned reading [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1-5] [2500 pp. for 165 hours for 800-level, 1200 pp. for 78 hours for 500-level students]
3. Weekly exegetical work, including translation [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1-5] [1000 words each for 60 hours for 800-level; 500 words each for 30 hours for 500-level]. (20% for 800-level; 25% for 500-level)
4. Exegetical assignments (20%). [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #3-4] [three for 800-level for 40 hours; one for 500-level for 10 hours].
5. Seminar presentation (15%). [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #2, 4, and 5] [15 hours for 800-level; 5 hours for 500-level].
6. Critical response (5%). [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #2, 4, and 5] [10 hours for 800-level].
7. Research exegetical paper (40%). [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1-5] [70 hours for 800-level students; 30 hours for 500-level students].

PREREQUISITES: For NT527, written permission of the instructor is required. No auditors.

RELATIONSHIP TO CURRICULUM: Counts as a biblical elective for the 120 MDiv, 80 MAT, and 80 MATM Programs (Fall 2015).

FINAL EXAMINATION: None.

NOTE: This ECD is a reliable guide to the course design but is subject to modification. Textbook prices are set by publishers and are subject to change. Copyright 2019 Fuller Theological Seminary.