Studying Early Judaism (New Series)
A Guide to Resources for New Testament Studies
New Series: Studying Early Judaism
If you are going to studying the New Testament coherently and responsibly, you will want to learn as much as you can about early Jewish history, culture, literature, and religion. The New Testament texts emerged from a movement inspired by Jesus of Nazareth; the first disciples and apostles were Jews and these texts take for granted Jewish ways of thinking about God and the world. The better you understand and appreciate early Judaism, the more the New Testament will come alive as texts written at a specific period in time by a specific group of people.
The good news is that there is now a lot of helpful, affordable, and easy to read resources for students and interested Bible readers. The bad news is that the amount of scholarly literature is so vast now that it is hard to know where to begin and what scholars consider reliable and accurate. This Substack series is designed to point you to what I consider the best resources.
This initial post will lay out where to begin with general reading.
WHERE TO BEGIN?
*disclaimer: I am trying to keep my recommended resources few and short so as not to overwhelm.
Learning the Basics of Early Judaism
First things first: what is early Judaism? To be honest, it is a bit difficult to define, because there is no widely agreed upon definition, but just to give you a sense, early Judaism typically refers to Jewish religion and traditions covered by the span of the 6th cent. BC to AD 70. Sometimes early Judaism is also called “Second Temple Judaism.”
An Introduction to Early Judaism (James VanderKam)
My very first introduction to EJ in seminary was the short textbook by VanderKam. Thankfully, it continues to be updated and is still a great primer.
Early Judaism: A Comprehensive Overview (John Collins and Daniel Harlow)
If you are looking for something more detailed, a good starting place is this hefty overview.
From the Maccabees to the Mishnah (Shaye Cohen)
This excellent (3rd ed) textbook focuses on the vast literature of EJ. This is a must-read.
The New Testament and the People of God (NT Wright)
Another option is Wright’s NTPG. It was originally published in 1992, so it is a bit dated, and some scholars think Wright paints with too broad brushstrokes, but it still holds up in general as a big-picture textbook.
Judaism: Practice and Belief (E.P. Sanders)
Another classic is Sanders’ Judaism book.
Mind the Gap: How the Jewish Writings between the Old and New Testament Help Us Understand Jesus (Matthias Henze)
This is a great, easy to read resource for better understanding how Jewish context and literature informs our understanding of Jesus and the NT.
The Eerdmans Dictionary of Early Judaism
Published in 2010, this is the best up-to-date resource covering virtually all key areas of the study of EJ. If you want to move towards mastery, this is the book to get! I use it all the time!
