598 - Early Biblical Interpretation

Early Biblical Interpretation

By James L. Kugel and Rowan A. Greer

Philadelphia, Westminster, 1986. 214 Pp. $18.95.

This is a volume of the newly founded series entitled "Library of Early Christianity" under the general editorial supervision of Wayne A. Meeks of Yale University. It contains two essays on biblical interpretation, Jewish and Christian, in late antiquity. The book, so the blurb on the dust jacket states, "will enable readers to understand the historical forces that shaped early attitudes toward Scripture within the biblical period itself, and to recognize some of the characteristic forms adopted by early exegetes."

Kugel, who teaches Hebrew literature at Harvard, traces the story of the growth (and the growing importance) of Israel's sacred library as well as the perceived necessity of interpreting these ancient books, making them applicable to present needs, particularly during and after the Exile. There were several kinds of interpreters, such as "sons of

600 - Early Biblical Interpretation

prophets," often in a school-like setting (II Kings 6:1-3), teachers of wisdom, as well as temple priests and Levites. From among this heterogeneous group of early interpreters, there eventually emerged a succession of interpreters, called rabbis, who would ultimately produce an enormous corpus of biblical commentary, notably the Mishnah and Talmuds. These latter comprised both legal details (halacha) and non-legal exegesis, including popular tales (haggada).

Kugel's essay, having identified some of the currents that shaped Israel's interest in, and approaches to, Scripture, turns to examine several actual interpretive texts to see how they embody earlier trends and tendencies. Included here are examples from Qumran, Philo, and the Targums, as well as instances of elaboration within the Hebrew Bible itself of earlier laws and exhortations.

In the second half of the book, Greer, who is professor of Anglican Studies at Yale Divinity School, briefly traces the familiar story of the rise of the Christian Bible. Within the New Testament, we see the varied uses made of the Hebrew Scriptures in preaching the gospel. In the following centuries, the Apostolic Fathers and the Apologists found types and allegories in the Old Testament prefiguring the evangelic account of Jesus Christ. At this time, stereotyped testimony lists were drawn up, in which Old Testament texts were assembled each with a presumed fulfillment mentioned in the New Testament. The focus of all these attempts at interpreting the Old Testament in the context of liturgical and doctrinal developments in the early church was, as Greer recognizes, Irenaeus of Gaul, who flourished during the last quarter of the second century. It was then that certain apostolic writings, for the first time, were identified as the Rule of Faith. Because of doctrinal controversies with Gnostics and others, the limits of the New Testament came to be recognized with ever greater distinctness.

As a whole, this book provides a helpful orientation to some of the main stages of early biblical interpretation. Within the limits set by the series and the purpose of supplying an introduction to the subject matter, one does not expect to find a comprehensive treatment of the subject. For example, Kugel devotes less than one page to the canonization of the Old Testament. Likewise Greer, when dealing with the rise of the Christian Bible, over-simplifies the complexity of the subject, giving little attention to books of local and temporary canonicity. No one would know from his account, for example, that the early Syrian and Armenian churches used Paul's Third Epistle to the Corinthians, or that the Epistle to the Laodiceans kept bobbing up over the centuries in Vulgate Latin manuscripts-being included, in fact, after Galatians in all eighteen printed German Bibles prior to Luther's German translation.

At the same time, however, this book will be welcomed by many students and pastors as providing an overview of the high points during a long and complicated process, told in an interesting and clear manner. An index of scriptural citations is included, but there is no index of

601 - Early Biblical Interpretation

subject matter. The notes are placed at the end of the volume, to the inconvenience of the reader.

BRUCE M. METZGER

Princeton Theological Seminary
Princeton, New Jersey