"Dictionary of Paul and His Letters" Second Edition. A Review

 

Way back in a different time and space continuum, there was a dictionary of Paul and his letters. That was in 1993. Since then the earth has orbited the sun nearly thirty times, the internet has arisen with immediate news, along with social media, and easier access to academic studies from all over the world, and more. But the original dictionary held the benchmark of scholarship and studies, until this year. Now there has come forth a second edition of the “Dictionary of Paul and His Letters: A Compendium of Contemporary Biblical Scholarship”. Only 15 of the original articles have been reused, while a whole new cast of scholars, over 140, have been tasked to pen more than 200 freshly written articles for this 1264-page hardback. The entire endeavor was overseen by Scott McKnight, the Julius R. Mantey Chair of New Testament at Northern Seminary, who was helped by associate editors Lynn H. Cohick, provost and dean of academic affairs at Northern Seminary, and Nijay K. Gupta, professor of New Testament at Northern Seminary. Though the volume is hefty in size and weight, it is also hefty in scholarly detail.

 

The emphasis is on the subtitle. This is a compilation of studies that revolve around the Apostle Paul and the letters he wrote, or are attributed to him, in the New Testament. Like any dictionary, it follows an alphabetic program of subject matter so that one can easily go to the “A” section, for example, and easily find installments under Abraham, Adam and Christ, Adoption, Apocalypticism, and many more.  Each article is a full-length exposé worthy of a theological journal. Some subjects fill most of a double-columned 7x10 page. Others take up thirteen to fourteen of those pages. Each piece ends with a bibliography. As I stated, every one of these is worthy of a place in a theological journal.

 

One of the things I noticed while working through this dictionary, was that the writers, who come from a wide spectrum of tribes within the Christian family, are serious about their subject. One might well conclude that none of the essayists abides on the more skeptical side of the aisle. Another item I observed is that those writers who address the subject of male and female in some aspect, are more heavily weighted on the egalitarian side of those debates. Though I’m not egalitarian, I found their material normally well thought out and instructive.

 

I personally enjoyed several of the studies, such as the one on adoption written by Erin M. Heim, and the one on the body composed by Paula Gooder. I also appreciated the contribution by Michelle Lee-Barnewall on man and woman, even though I wasn’t convinced of all of her conclusions. In fact, I found immediate use of some of the subjects in this tome as I am presently preaching through Colossians. All-in-all, having worked through the volume from A to W (there is no X, Y, or Z section), I was not disappointed and will revert to this dictionary for years to come.

This “Dictionary of Paul and His Letters” is a valuable resource and well worth the cost. It would be an ideal suggestion to make with your family when they ask what you want for your birthday or Christmas. It would even be a good use of any honorarium or “pastor appreciation” gift card you receive. And, if you just happen to have a month where you have a few extra dollars sitting around in your account, you will not be disappointed if you invest in obtaining one. Academic libraries must snatch up a copy as well. I highly recommend the work.

 

My thanks to IVP Academic. I asked for a review copy and they speedily sent me the one used for this review. They made no demands, other than that I would give my own evaluation of the book. This I have done freely. Unfortunately, the only creature who might have been hurt in supplying me with this work was the UPS delivery guy, but I think he’ll live.