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Assessment Guide For INBX204
Assessment Guide For INBX204
Pick ONE!
Due Sept 30
Start: Read the passage for yourself a number of times, and make a preliminary attempt to telling the story without looking at any other resources. It is likely you will be wrong on some things, but on other things your imagination will serve you well. This way of doing things allows you to think original thoughts first.
Craig Keener, Bible Backgrounds Commentary (find the passage) this book is in Closed Reserve, under 225.7 KEE. Additional copies in Reference section under 225.7 KEE Clinton Arnold (ed.), Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backcegrounds Commentary (find the passage) in Reference section under 225.7 ARN Everett Ferguson, Backgrounds of Early Christianity (use index to find topics like women, demon-possessed, Samaritans, etc) in Closed Reserveunder 270.1 FER.
J.J. Pilch, Biblical Social Values and the Meaning (use the index/contents to find topics relevant to your passage) in Closed Reserve 225.9503 PIL Kenneth Bailey, Jesus through Middle Eastern Eyes (use the index to find topics) in Closed Reserve under 232.9 BAI J. Green and S McKnight, Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels (use the index to find topics) in Reference 226.03 GRE. For commentaries on Matthew, Mark, Luke or John, see the section 226 in the library.
1. Read the passage in the NIV or TNIV. 2. Read the passage in another translation either NASB, ESV, or NRSV. If you notice any major translation differences, make a note of them. 3. Now read the whole letter in the NIV or TNIV several times. Make a short summary outline of what you think the whole argument of the book is, and also include questions you might have. If stuck, try and answer these questions a. What is Paul trying to achieve by writing the letter correct a viewpoint? change behaviour? defend his honour? b. Does the letter tell us what is going on i.e. the situation for him or for them that has called forth the letter? 4. Read up on the historical background to the letter in The Lion Handbook to the Bible or the New Bible Dictionary. The Lion Handbook will have a section on each biblical book, sorted in the order that the Bible is sorted. The New Bible Dictionary will have lots of articles, alphabetically listed. So if looking for the article on Pauls first letter to the Thessalonians, look up entries under T. 5. Read the whole letter in the NIV or TNIV again, and see if you can understand more of it in light of the reading you have done. 6. Read someone elses outline of what they think the whole book is saying I recommend Gordon Fee and Douglas Stuart, How to Read the Bible Book by Book. This has a chapter on each and every biblical book, sorted in the order that the Bible is sorted. So find the chapter on 1 Thessalonians. 7. Now read the passage you are studying again, paying close attention to its specific words and phrases. 8. Consult multiple commentaries to explore the meaning of each and every sentence. Are there special words that need to have their meaning unpacked? 9. Start to draw some conclusions about what the passage means within context.
1. Give the passage you are explaining in the translation you are using (i.e. if your main translation is the NIV, print it in the NIV, if ESV, print ESV). It is assumed you have used more than one translation, but there will be one you prioritise. 2. Give a brief introductory paragraph that summarises what you think the basic point of the passage is. Of course, this point that you are making is what you are going to prove in the remainder of the essay, but here I want to know, right up front, what is the basic point of interpretation of this passage. 3. Give the historical context of your passage. So for you, that means attending to details like when 1 Thessalonians was written? To whom was it written?
What was going on in the church to provoke what Paul wrote? This is where your research on historical background will come into play. 4. Give the literary context of your passage which means providing some sort of indication as to where your passage comes in the whole letter. What has Paul been arguing about just before your passage? What about straight after? How does this passage fit into the larger scheme of the letter? Does your passage represent a climax to an argument? Is it preparation for a later argument? 5. Give a detailed commentary on your passage. Here you should work systematically through the parts, commenting in as much detail as space will allow. At the end, you should give a short conclusion to sum up your commentary. 6. Give an application of the passage to the present day. Your application should show some connection to the work you have done in the previous sections. So, even though we live in a different context, show the core principles that apply across cultures.