Taking up the concept of reception history/Rezeptionsästhetik, as described by its founder, Hans Robert Jauss, this project considers the way in which diverse contexts shape the ways in which readers of 2 Thessalonians have historically interpreted the epistle. Supplementing Jauss’ methodology with insights from theological scholars, the larger questions of biblical meaning and continuity between biblical interpreters enters the discussion. In the former case, this research discounts the bifurcated directions of historical positivism that equates biblical meaning either with historical background or authorial intent. Related to this, the research proposes the continuity between historical interpreters of 2 Thessalonians be construed in terms of historical dialogue, which constitutes the being of the work. Three historical interpreters of 2 Thessalonians from different historical periods of the Church serve as the receptive foci in this dissertation: John Chrysostom (early Church), Haimo of Auxerre (Medieval Church), and John Calvin (Reformation). Following Jauss’ Rezpetionsästhetik, these interpreters are placed in their compositional contexts and in dialogue with modern interpreters of the same epistle. By passing through the various dimensions of the letter’s otherness, the research brings to the fore potential present appropriations of meaning.

This Ph.D. dissertation examines the seven joy statements in the Book of Qoheleth (2.24-25; 3.12-13; 3.22; 5.17-19; 8.15; 9.7-9; 11.8-9) in order to understand their literary nature and effects. The thesis question which this dissertation attempts to answer is: Can scepticism and ironic correlations be found in the joy statements of Qoheleth? After examining the thesis question, the conclusion was drawn (thesis): Even if there is no scepticism in the joy statements of Qoheleth, one must be sceptical about any interpretation of them. In other words: Any reading of the joy statements in Qoheleth must be viewed as indeterminate. This conclusion was drawn not only on the basis of the literary nature and effects of the joy statements alone, which were indeterminate, but in the light of scepticism as a philosophy and because of possible correlations with irony. The methodology for examining the thesis question is progressive. Each chapter of the dissertation provides additional information from the most basic upwards in an attempt to answer the question. Each chapter and section are critically assessed and conclusions drawn. The methodology of this dissertation is as follows: Chapter one provides a careful analysis of key terms in Qoheleth: Chapter two provides a detailed exegesis of the joy statements. Chapter three provides a form critical analysis of the joy statements with special attention to their literary form in the overall literary structure of the book and within their overall (1.12-2.26; 3.1-15; 3.15-22; 5.7-6.9; 8.1-10.20; 9.1-12; 11.7-12.7) and immediate (2.17-26; 3.9-15; 3.18-22; 5.15-6.2; 8.10-17; 9.7-10; 11.8-9) contexts, additional exegetical notes, and with reference to Qoheleth's overall content and ethos. Chapter four provides an overview of the philosophy of scepticism and the view there is a sceptical traditional in the Hebrew Bible.

This redaction-critical study interprets the reasons for judgment in Amos 2.6-16 in the literary context of each of the redactional compositions which, I argue, underlie the Amos-text. It is proposed that the Amos-text is both a theological work and a tractate of social criticism. In the earlier redactional compositions the dominant reasons for judgment concern mistreatment of the weak. In the later redactional compositions these are overshadowed, in terms of length of text, by more theological reasons for judgment; however, these strengthen, rather than weaken, the force of the older reasons for judgment. After an introductory first chapter, Chapter 2 describes and defends the methodology employed, and establishes the terminology of “composition” and “redactional composition”. Chapter 3 makes proposals concerning the compositional history of the Amos-text, attributing each unit to one of four redactional compositions. This chapter builds on the significant works of Hans W Wolff and Jörg Jeremias, following one or both of them at many points. Chapter 4 then describes the structural, linguistic and thematic coherence of each redactional composition in order to confirm the likelihood of its existence, and to note perspectives or significant themes relevant to the interpretation of the whole composition, including 2.6-16. Chapter 5 addresses two issues pertinent to the interpretation of Amos 2.6-16. Firstly, the relationship of Amos 2.8 to verses in the so-called Book of the Covenant is explored in the light of current scholarly views concerning its dating; its relationship to verses in Deuteronomy 24 is also considered. Secondly, the question of whether 2.10-12 exhibits Deuteronomistic influence is examined. Chapter 6 then conducts an exegesis of Amos 2.6-16 in each of the redactional compositions underlying the Amos-text, with particular attention paid to the reasons for judgment. The final chapter summarises the argument, draws conclusions, and notes possible areas of future study.

This thesis starts with questions over Luke's idea of the relation between wealth and discipleship. Previous attempts are found to have failed to reconcile the matter of wealth and poverty with the theme of discipleship in Luke's theology. This failure motivates us to investigate a new paradigm, that is, stewardship. The following are the results that we have gained through our exploration. 1. With regard to the Sitz im Leben of Luke-Acts, it has been revealed that Luke's community would have been located in a urban setting steeped in the Hellenistic culture somewhere in the Roman East around the end of the first century A.D., and its members would have consisted of Gentiles in terms of their ethnic background, and in view of their socio-economic status, the rich and the poor who represented both extreme ends of the spectrum of contemporary society. 2. While Mark demands literal renunciation of wealth from Jesus' disciples which arises from his idea of discipleship, Luke wants Jesus' disciples to surrender the ownership of their wealth. 3. Luke wants to define the relation between God and his people as that of master and slave, rather than the teacher-pupil relation that constitutes a basic element of Markan discipleship. 4. When these two motifs unique to Luke are combined, it emerges that stewardship is a main motif that Luke wants his congregations to consider, particularly when they are asked to deal with material possessions (Lk 12.42-48; 16.1-13; 19.11-27). 5. Almsgiving is suggested as a proper way that Christians should use their wealth when this stewardship is adequately applied. An appeal to almsgiving appears to be the ultimate aim that Luke intends when he incorporates into his Gospel so much material on wealth.

This thesis addresses the apparent puzzle of the theology of judgement in the Fourth Gospel. Throughout John’s Gospel, Jesus is presented as both judging and not judging while eschatological scenarios are presented and alluded to in which humanity will be judged at the last day and also in which will be no final judgement. This puzzling theology is particularly apparent in John 5 as has been noted many times in Johannine scholarship. In order to resolve this puzzle a hypothesis in initially proposed and the remainder of the study is devoted to affirming that the hypothesis does, in fact, provide a resolution. The hypothesis which is proposed at the beginning of this thesis is that John 5 presents a unified theology of judgement which is bicameral in that it consists of two eschatological compartments – one for Christian believers and one for the rest of humanity. The eschatology which John 5 presents for Christian believers is one in which they have been exempted from any end-time judgement process, but have already obtained the salvific benefit of eternal life which they shall continue to enjoy in a heavenly realm following bodily death. In parallel, John 5 presents a more traditional eschatology of a judgement tribunal for the rest of humanity at the eschaton where Christ, as God’s appointed judge, will sit in judgement of those who have rejected him and those who have not had the opportunity to accept him. The salvific benefits of such a bicameral eschatology are directed entirely in favour of Christian believers. In addition, the hypothesis proposes that the Christology of the Fourth Gospel has developed specifically to empower the Johannine Christ to act as the bringer of life to Christian believers and as the deliverer of Judgement to the non-Christian portion of humanity. This thesis seeks to substantiate the validity of the hypothesis by firstly establishing three prerequisites for its applicability to the text of John 5. Firstly, it is necessary to establish that the Christology and eschatology which the hypothesis addresses are indeed to be found in the Gospel and in John 5 in particular. Secondly, it is necessary to search through Johannine scholarship to establish how the problem has been addressed before and whether any proposed solutions can successfully stand as obstacles to the application of the hypothesis. Thirdly, the hypothesis requires that John 5 is a unified text with no redactional insertions by secondary editors. All three of these prerequisites are addressed and a case is made for proceeding with the application of the hypothesis.

Bringing God into history is Jacob's task. Jacob the patriarch, the one who breaks through, is a powerful biblical figure who may have been a role model for Jesus and was considered eldest of the angels during New Testament. Medieval church frescoes depict Jesus and Jacob together wearing halos. Unfortunately, as a survey of commentary will show, Post-Reformation Jacob becomes the typical Jew ruthlessly taking advantage of his brother, repulsive, a vile deceiver. Cardinal Ratzinger questioned whether Christians still can claim in good conscience to be the legitimate heirs of Israel's Bible: to a degree Jacob, his narrative, and a viable hermeneutic has been 'lost' to Christianity. Decisively breaking with more traditional and literary approaches, the oldest hermeneutic has been rearticulated and brought back into play: verbal performing art. It is this hermeneutic - more intuitional and more capable of capturing ephemeral poetic moments - that can efficaciously attend to the biblical text's heterogene vivacity. It is well suited to explore inherent textual ambiguity. Loosely set within an ethnographic context where both narrative and character demand serious attention, the Jacobean narrative is approached closely. Seeking Jewish perspectives as well as Christian, it listens carefully for possibly dominated voices. There in the textual gaps, evidence will be found of a more hidden transcript with trickster discourse. Primarily a theological endeavour attempting to build bridges to the Tanakh for Christian readers, the goal is to discover fresh presences of Jacob, uncover narrative coherence for his actions and establish theological significance. A return to the biblical text will reveal that between the formative time and Sinaiic time lies Jacobean time. As will be demonstrated, Jacob is blessed by God only after Jacob recognizes his own amporphous disruptive and subversive abilities. As has been said of others, Jacob shatters convention by mastering tradition. Jacob is the liminal figure who grasps the nature of perdurance and is therefore able to conceive a nascent Judaism and ensure that at Sinai the covenant will be set in Halakah. Jacob's narrative can be conceived as a tribute to sacred trickster.

The problem of what, if anything, brings continuity of thought to the exhortations found in the New Testament Letter of James has perplexed, and continues to perplex interpreters of this letter. Indeed, for Martin Dibelius the literary character of this letter provided no opportunity for the development, or elaboration of religious ideas. In view of this fact, Dibelius concluded that the Letter of James has no theology. In this present consideration of James, it is demonstrated that Dibelius' view of James as lacking a developed theology is quite mistaken. In contrast to Dibelius' opinion, James' employment and development of convenant thought provides the letter with continuity of thought, as the author uses it to challenge the 'defective' theology of the implied audience, whilst establishing his own alternative theology. The thesis proceeds by examining three aspects of covenant thought (God's character, the nature of the convenant relationship, and the threat of assimilation) in the context of the Old Testament and other Jewish sources. Then the indictment of the implied audience, found in Jas 4:1-6, is considered in order to establish whether or not covenant thought is a significant factor in James' theology. This consideration establishes that James employs and develops covenant thought, and on this basis the following chapters proceed to investigate the role this ideology performs in the exhortations of Jas 1-2. Finally, a summary analysis of the remainder of the letter (3:1-18; 4:7-5:20) confirms that covenant thought is influential throughout the whole letter. Consequently, it is evident that covenant thought performs a significant role in the theology and ethics of the Letter of James as he seeks to combat the 'defective' theology of the implied audience whose unfaithfulness is related to their misunderstanding of both God's character and their relationship to him.

This thesis takes account of the basic need, in regard to all study of Mark's Gospel, of an understanding of his outline plan, and his presentational-method. A thorough-going, purely literary-structural analysis is tackled. It is a task that has been waiting to be done in this era of modern biblical criticism. In the Introduction, it is recognised that through the years investigative methodologies have been developed, and that today still more are being added to the list. That fundamental questions remain unanswered, however, is also recognised. On matters of Mark's leading idea, and his theological, literary and compositional abilities, all these methodologies have led so far only to a bewildering increase in contradictory views. An analysis of the text is needed still. The cultural and historical context of the Gospel, therefore is addressed afresh. Underlying issues regarding the functionings of the 'new' literary genre of Gospel are raised. The particular requirements of a plan and presentational method are also explored. Against this backdrop, the primary importance of "Days" in Mark's presentation is introduced, and Mark's "Day" is defined. Literary-structural analysis begins with identifying the signals of primary structure. It develops as Mark's construction method becomes clear. In chapters 2 to 7, the text of the Gospel, as it stands, is examined and analysed fully. The gospel narrative (1.21-16.8) is found to consist of twenty-eight days which are presented in four Series of seven "Days". Each Series represents a Stage in the Mission of Jesus. Contrary to accepted scholarship, the Prologue is defined as the first twenty verses (1.1-20), and a reduced "longer ending" of nine-and-a-half verses (16.9-16,19,20a) is deemed to be representative, in its form and in the majority of its details, of an Epilogue which Mark himself created with the Prologue as a frame to his Gospel.

In this thesis, the concept of the character as reader is explored as a means of revealing the poetics of the text of 2 Samuel. A preliminary examination of David's interpretation of the story of the Amalekite messenger in 2 Sam 1 leads to the conclusion that the polysemy of the Amalekite's utterances is turned against him. David as reader re-writes the Amalekite's utterances. This leads to a theoretical investigation of what it might mean to refer to a character as reader. The concept of mise en abyme suggests that the character's reading may be both a model and an antimodel of the reading strategy revealed by the character. The concept of the 'character as reader' is then investigated using theories of the literary character from Aristotle to Greimas coupled with theories of reading as inference and the linguistic theories of Bakhtin and Austin. These all combine to reinforce the contention that meaning is a dialogic process, dependent on the response of the interlocutor, but in inviting response, provokes the hearer or reader to utter. The character as reader is defined as a signed site of translation, a particular interpretative transformation of perlocutionary force into illocution which is given coherence by a proper name. Character as reader is character as utterer. This definition is then used to look at two stories where David 'interprets' a text, 2 Samuel 12: 1-15 and 2 Sam 14. Here the parodic relationship between these two texts is explored, and the difference in reading stances which are labelled by the name David is pointed out. This parodic relationship foregrounds the fact that both stories share the device of provoking an oath.

This thesis attempts to contribute to the study of identity formation in early Christianity by exploring the part played in this by sexual ethics. To this end it focuses on 1Corinthians 5-7, as the longest discussion of sex in the New Testament. Unlike many previous studies, this study sets out to consider these chapters as a unified discourse, and to consider them in the wider context of the epistle as a whole. The study engages in a close reading of the discourse, paying attention to how Paul's ethical instructions themselves, and his rhetoric (used to describe and evaluate insiders and outsiders), contribute to establishing Christian identity. It examines how convictions about Christian ethics and identity govern relations with outsiders, internal regulation, and reactions to social institutions. Particular attention is paid to Paul's 'body language' and what it might reveal about the relations of individual, Christian group and wider society in Paul's thought. Chapter one explores the concept of identity. It argues that identity is largely dependent on the subjective perception and evaluation of difference. The work of anthropologist Frederik Barth and social psychologist Henri Tajfel are used to reflect upon how social identities interact, both at the psychological level of the individual and at the sociological level of the group, and to provide resources for the study of 1Cor. It is noted that social groups require to establish a positive social identity for their members, and that this is always comparative in nature. How such comparisons operate, how they generate group stereotypes, and how the language of ingroup/outgroup comparison can be used to control the activity of ingroup members, are also explored. Chapter two examines the lessons learned with a brief consideration of the discourses of some Roman writers. It investigates how they used sexual ethics and rhetoric in the maintenance of group identity and the process of group control. Chapter three then takes an overview of 1Cor, considering the context into which Paul writes and the objectives he has in writing. In particular it explores Paul's rhetoric in 1Cor 1-4, and how his description and evaluation of insider and outsider serves to construct identity and control behaviour. The remaining chapters scrutinise 1Cor 5-7 in depth.