herm! textual criticism & biblical theology

Alexandrian manuscripts

the greek manuscripts that come from the dessert parts of Egypt; there are few of these mansuscripts; they are the oldest manuscripts; they are shorter manuscripts

byzantine manuscripts

the greek manuscripts that come from the estern Roman empire; there are many of these mansuscripts; they are newer manuscripts; they are longer manuscripts

canonical

a canonical book is a book that is included in the biblical canon; a canonical book has a canonical form or shape to it when it became a part of the

canonization

the process of a biblical book becoming a part of the biblical canon

composition (phase in making a biblical book)

the making of a whole coherent and cohesive book with a particular beginning, middle, and ending by how an author selects, adapts, and arranges his material to provide his perspective and message

dead sea scrolls

the oldest ancient Hebrew manuscripts of the OT discovered in 1947 in caves; it preseves a consonantal text that affirms the Masoretic Texts and the Hebrew behind the Septuagint

external text critical information

data about a biblical manuscript's location, condition, scribe, scribal habits, and family of manuscripts

internal text critical information

data about the actual words and letters of a biblical manuscript

lower criticism

another name for textual criticism

manuscript

an ancient handwritten text of a biblical book or part of a biblical book

masoretic text

the OT manuscript family preserved by the Masoretes

miniscule manuscript

these are greek manuscipts that include lower case letters and were copied later than the original uncial manuscripts

reading of a text

the way a particular manuscipt or manuscript family preserves a specific section of a text that in some way differs from other manuscipts

textual criticism

seeks to determine the ORIGINAL form of a biblical text

textual family

a grouping of common and historically connected mansuscripts that share traits and reflect similar readings between them

the aramaic targums

ancient Jewish commentaries on the OT written in Aramaic that preserve readings of the OT older than the NT

the canon

the books included in the Bible, OT and NT

the septuagint

the ancient greek translation of the OT that is one of the main witnesses to the orignal, canonical, or earliest possible form of the OT

the syriac peshitta

an ancient syriac translation of the OT and NT for use in ancient Syriac churches

the vulgate

an ancient latin translation of the OT and NT by Jerome that become the main Bible in the western church; it preserves OT readings from the MT and LXX

transmission history

the history of how a biblical book was transmitted over time

uncial manuscript

the oldest greek manuscripts written in all capital letters with no spacing between words and without any punctuation

variant readings

different readings of a biblical text during the text's consolidation that textual criticism evaluates

Term

Simple Class Definition

Biblical Theology

Seeks the authorially intended message of a Biblical book as part of the canon

Covenant

A binding agreement between God and man or between two people that seals a relationship.

Covenant Theology

Explains the Bible's message through the continuity of its covenants with each Biblical covenant reflecting the covenants of work and grace between God and man; it emphasizes continuity between Israel and the Church; it divides the law codes into moral, civil, and ceremonial with the church under its moral aspect.

Dispensationalism

Explains the Bible's message through the discontinuity of the covenants with each new covenant forming a distinct test of a person or group of people or all of humanity to show that man is in constant need of God's grace; it emphasizes a distinction between Israel and the church; the MC's law codes do not apply to the church.

Federal Theology

Another name for covenant theology, which explains the Bible's message through the continuity of its covenants with each Biblical covenant reflecting the covenant of redemption (within God) and the covenants of work and grace between God and man; it emphasizes continuity between Israel and the Church; it divides the law codes into moral, civil, and ceremonial with the church under its moral aspect.

New Covenant Theology

A compromise between covenant theology and dispensationalism that does not divide the law codes into moral, civil, and ceremonial

Progressive Covenantalism

A reformed baptist compromise between covenant theology and dispensationalism that emphasizes the covenants as a guide through the Old Testament, giving the Old Testament time to speak on its own terms; Old Testament connects to the New Testament through typology

Progressive Dispensationalism

A compromise between covenant theology and dispensationalism that sees overlap between dispensationalism's emphasis on two people of God and in the covenants themselves.

Progressive Revelation

God reveals Himself over time rather than all at once.

Systematic Theology

Seeks an answer to a particular topic or question based upon reading the whole canon synchronically and the church's interpretations synchronically, being organized by key doctrines (man, God, and the cross), so that the church may proclaim and practice rightly.

The Book of Acts

The fifth book of the New Testament canon is a narrative that outlines how God's Spirit acted in the early church and that teaches how to wait for God's kingdom to come.

The Book of Revelation

The last book of the New Testament canon is an apocalyptic epistle that commands its readers to meditate on the Torah while waiting for God's kingdom to come.

The Epistles

The letters of the New Testament

The Former Prophets

The first half of the Prophets, which is the second part of the OT; it contains prophetic narratives of Israel's time in Canaan; Joshua, Judges, Samuel, Kings.

The Gospels

The four NT books that narrate the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

The Prophets

The second part of the Old Testament; it is one book unto itself; it divides into the Former Prophets (the story of Israel's time in the land of Canaan) and the Latter Prophets (prophectic reflections on this time in light of the Torah)

The Writings

The third part of the Old Testament; it is one book unto itself; it includes Psalms, Job, Proverbs, Ruth, Song of Songs, Ecclesiastes, Lamentations, Esther, Daniel, Ezra, Nehemiah, and Chronicles.

The Torah

The first part of the OT; it is one book unto itself; it contains five "books": Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.

The Synoptic Gospels

The synoptic gospels are Matthew, Mark, and Luke; they share a lot of common material.

The Latter Prophets

The second half of the prophets, which is the second part of the Old Testament; it contains most of the prophetic (genre) books; Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and the Twelve.

Orthopraxy

Right practice

Orthodoxy

Right doctrine

Historical Theology

Seeks an answer to how the church has understood, proclaimed, and practiced the Scriptures and its doctrines over different periods of time so that church may proclaim and practice rightly.