C. Marvin Pate

Good introduction to four views on the interpretation of the Book of Revelation. It would help to narrow down how one views Revelation, even if taking something from each view; and would also help to subtract those views that seem less viable when compared with the others. Each contributor's critical interaction with the other contributors is very helpful.

Revelation is a real complex and confusing book to understand, so this "Four View" may help arrange the issues in the minding some kind of order too, at least, give one a fundamental base when interpreting the text.… (meer)

'Q & A' books are as good as the questions they pose and the answers they give. I enjoyed Marvin Tate's book exploring Paul's eschatology (Apostle of the Last Days, Kregel Academic, 2013), but I was uncertain what I would think of his take on 'historical Jesus.' Yet 40 Questions About the Historical Jesus does a great job of summarizing the quest for the historical Jesus and answering questions about Jesus' life from a confessional perspective.

9780825442841The forty questions are organized under four headings, each with two sub-sections. Part 1, tackles background questions about the "historical Jesus." The first subsection summarizes the quest for the historical Jesus. The second subsection examines the source material for Jesus (the Old Testament, Jewish and non-Jewish sources, apocryphal gospels,oral tradition, the New Testament and archaeology). Part 2 explores the birth and childhood of Jesus, delving into Jesus' birth, family of origin (i.e. questions about the virgin birth and Jesus' siblings) and childhood. Part 3 examines Jesus' life and teachings while Part 4 discusses Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection.

This user-friendly book is a good apologetic resource for exploring the reliability of the Gospels and who Jesus was. Pate synthesizes insights of confessional scholarship (i.e. I.Howard Marshall, N.T. Wright, Craig Evans, Darrell Bock, etc). This is a quick-at-a-glance resource more than an in-depth exploration. I recommend this book for pastoral ministry and campus ministries. I give it four stars.

Note: I received this book from Kregel Academic in exchange for my honest review.… (meer)

Scholars debate the center of Paul’s theology. Protestant Reformers saw ‘Justification by faith’ as their hermeneutical key. The Tubingen theory (from F.C. Baur et al.) posited a dialectic between Paul’s message of ’justification by faith’ with Peter’s ‘justification by faith plus the works of the Torah.’ A Third hypothesis reads a shift in Paul–from Judaism to Hellenistic religion. A fourth possibility is that Paul’s theology is ‘Jewish eschatology but in a revised form’ (14-16). This is the position that C. Marvin Pate argues for in Apostle of the Last Days: the Life, Letters and Theology of Paul-.

There have been varying eschatological constructs for understanding the New Testament (Jesus and Paul). “Consistent Eschatology” argues for a wholly futurist understanding of ‘last days.’ At the other extreme, a “Realized Eschatology” argues that the Kingdom of God has already come in the person and mission of Jesus Christ. A mediating position, is “Inaugurated Eschatology.” This view acknowledges both that Jesus’ mission and life announced the Kingdom, but it has not come in its fullness. It is now, but not yet. Pate argues that this best describes the Apostle Paul’s apocolypticism (19).

However the genesis of Pate’s approach is his observation of a clash of eschatologies between Paul and his opponents. Apostle of the Last Days examines the Pauline epistles and the issues that Paul addressed, While Paul had an ‘inaugurated eschatology’ with Jesus’ death and resurrection at the center, his opponents clung to diverse, eschatological hopes. The Imperial cult, Hellenistic religion and Jewish Merkabah Mysticism (sometimes in a Christian variety) had different versions of a realized eschatology. Non-Christian, non-merkbah Judaism had a consistent eschatology, which awaited God’s future (political) deliverance. The Christian Judaizers had an inaugurated eschatology, but by giving weight to the Mosaic tradition they downplayed Jesus’ significance.

In part one of this book, Pate walks through each of the epistles and shows how Paul answered each of these opponents and the way he expressed his own eschatological hope. Part two examines Paul’s theology in systematic categories with an eye towards how Paul’s eschatology shapes his thinking about God.

This is a good book. Pate’s eschatological read of Paul (and his opponents) illuminates his epistles. Paul’s Christological hope was grounded in Jesus’ life, death and resurrection, and Paul awaited a future reality where Christ returns to put the world to rights. So there is a lot that is fruitful here. Pate walks through the entire Pauline corpus. I found I didn’t always agree with his handling of individual passages and was occasionally bothered by a supercessionist tone which described ‘the Old Testament’ as ‘works righteousness’ and faith and Jesus as the gift of grace. There is a greater continuity between testaments than Pate allows. God’s choice of Israel was not rooted in merit, but in Divine pleasure. Yet I appreciated his analysis.

Eschatology is a word which many of us are wary of. Certainly there has been an unhealthy fascination with what Christ return will look like (and who ‘the beast’ is). Nevertheless I appreciate Pate’s description of Paul’s eschatological hope. This book contributes to a deeper understanding and appreciation of Paul’s gospel. Anyone wishing to deepen their understanding of the Pauline Epistles will benefit from Pate’s walk-through. I give this book four stars.

Thank you to Kregel Academic for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.… (meer)