New Testament Introduction (Master Reference Collection) [Hardcover]

Donald Guthrie (Author)

Book Description

Series: Master Reference Collection | Publication Date: June 15, 1990

Twenty years after its first release in one volume, Donald Guthrie has revised his widely acclaimed New Testament Introduction. A careful recasting of a benchmark evangelical work, this new edition provides a fixed point for surveying the books of the New Testament. Noting the issues raised by the past two decades of biblical scholarship, Guthrie engages the issues of authorship and authenticity, purpose and structure, historical context and cultural setting. In these discussions, as well as in the notes and bibliographies, he draws on a wealth of recent scholarly research which gives added value to this classic resource.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 1161 pages
• Publisher: IVP Academic; Rev Upd Su edition (June 15, 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0830814027
• ISBN-13: 978-0830814022
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.4 x 2.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #85,680 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

38 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Exhaustive and Invaluable Reference Work, January 6, 2001

By 

T. B. Vick "T.B.V." - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: New Testament Introduction (Master Reference Collection) (Hardcover)

This New Testament Introduction is a monster volume that is exhaustive in its content. Guthrie's book is considered by many scholars (i.e. D. A. Carson, Wilbur Smith, etc.) to be one of, if not the best Introduction to the New Testament texts available. This book is a standard text book at seminaries all across the country. It was first published in 1961 and has been revised, updated, and also endured the test of time (which can be the strongest enemy of any book). Guthrie covers every possible detail from each of the books of the New Testament, including literary form, characteristics of NT writings, purpose, place of origin, dates, languages, historicity, locality, readers (then and now), Synoptic Problem, form criticism and its development, and much, much, much, much, more! This book is well over 1000 pages of great research. If you are looking for a single volume which covers the NT, then you would need to look no further than this text. The bibliography of this book is over 100 pages, which is massive and very helpful if you like to branch off in your research. It is equally useful for the serious researcher and the lay person alike. In fact I bought my copy about 7 years ago and have used it prior to my seminary career, during my seminary career, and I know I will use it for the rest of my researching days. In my estimation there is no other Introductory text that surpasses this one.

25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding general introduction on NT studies..., January 11, 2002

By 

Kersi Von Zerububbel "Kersi" (San Diego, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: New Testament Introduction (Master Reference Collection) (Hardcover)

This is an excellent text to get you into New Testament studies. The author clearly has deep respect, awe, and love for the NT canon. However, all sides of an issue are presented in a direct and scholarly manner with lots of references. Guthrie comes down strongly on the side of inerrancy AFTER discussing all other views. The writing is excellent.

Do not expect pretty pictures and slick shiny pages in this text. Instead what you will get is a great reference book that you will use repeatedly. My 1971 edition is worn out so I bought the recent edition. Also this edition has many more references incorporating recent work.

I do have one caveat. Before you delve into this book please be sure that you have a good working knowledge of the NT. If you do not then get one of the survey books first. There are excellent survey texts put out by folks like Gundry, Kromaki, and others.

I cannot say enough about the quality of this work. If you are serious about NT scholarship rush out and get this book. You may not agree with the author's theology in all areas but the book is definitely a MUST. Definitely a valuable addition for your study of the New Testament.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Standard Conservative Introduction, February 8, 2005

By 

Steve Jackson "stevejackson100atyahoocom" (New England) - See all my reviews

This review is from: New Testament Introduction (Master Reference Collection) (Hardcover)

NEW TESTAMENT INTRODUCTION by Donald Guthrie probably remains the standard conservative work of its genre. If you want to find consistently conservative views on the authorship, dating, and textual integrity of the books of the New Testament (NT), then this is the place to go. (Raymond Brown, who generally ignores conservative writers, describes this book as "very important".)

As an example of Guthrie's approach, take II Peter: Of all the books of the NT this is the one most likely to be pseudonymous. Guthrie marshals a substantial amount of evidence indicating that Peter could have written it. Much of this you won't find in other NT introductions, which often take for granted that it is a second century work.

It should be noted that this is an introduction to the books of the New Testament. Guthrie does not provide background studies on the history and culture of NT times, or synopsis of the events of the NT (life of Christ, journeys of Paul, etc.) Because of the limited scope of this work (and its length) it is definitely not the first book to read if you are new to the NT.