Book Review: The New Testament Background

Book Review: The New Testament Background

C.K Barrett has compiled an amazing and astounding collection of writing from ancient Greece and the Roman Empire that illuminate Christian origins (Harper Collins, New York: 1987). First published in England in 1956, this new edition has added features that reflect an increase in archaeological evidence since that time.

There are thirteen main sections. They are: The Roman empire, the Papyri, Inscriptions, the Philosophers and Poets, Gnosis and Gnosticism, Mystery Religions, Jewish History, Rabbinic Literature and Rabbinic Judaism, Qumran, Philo, Josephus, Septuagint and Targum and, finally, Apocalyptic.

The introduction gives a fitting opening for this type of book. Barrett writes that his intent was to give to English students a work similar to that of a German author in 1926. His statement, “Most men will never read such works, and even the best men will read little of them while they are undergraduates: all therefore might well be grateful for an opportunity of consulting a selection of ancient literature, all of it relevant to the New Testament, but some of it not readily accessible.” (page xix). This statement is certainly true, pointing to a great decline in the reading of even graduate students of classical literature and historic documents. I also found it interesting that he felt “the great tragedians as teachers about life, morals, destiny, and religion as profound as and more moving than the philosophers.” (page xx).

Due to the nature of this book, I feel compelled to simply highlight those aspects of the book that I found to be of great interest to me. First of all, Barrett gives a brief overview of each the sections listed above under the title, Sources (xxiii-xxix). In retrospect, I find that having read first, “The Land and the Book,” added greatly to the understanding of Barrett’s work.

In “The Roman Empire,” Barrett mentions several rulers. Tiberius pardoned the astrologers after they promised to “forsake their art.” (page 10). This is noteworthy because it shows the willingness of the Jews to suffer rather than forsake God.

“The Papyri” contains an amazingly precise description of how papyrus was made and graded and what it was used for (page 24-28). The best papyrus “was in early times devoted solely to books connected with religion” (page 25).

“Inscriptions” has a section on “Sacral Manumission,” or the release of a slave from bondage through the assistance of a God and his priests (page 55).

“Philosophers and Poets” contains the great word, “ratiocination,” which means “to reason methodically and logically” (page 58). It also contains samples of “the great writers of tragedy that one turns for profound reflection on human duty and destiny” (page 59). One such writer was Aristophanes, whom Plato thought to be “a pleasant and amusing companion who could lighten a conversation that was getting too serious” (page 85).

“Gnosis and Gnosticism” contains samples of the writings about Hermes Trismegistus (thrice–greatest Hermes), the Greek title for the Egyptian God Thoth who was thought to be greater than the Greek Olympian Hermes. His writers believed themselves to be “men who believed that there had been revealed to them a Gospel which it was their mission to preach to mankind” (page 94). In this we see a similarity to the apostles of Christ. In the Mandean Literature we see a reference to the god being a vine, “A vine am I, a vine of life” (page 116).

In “Jewish History,” Barrett defers to the work “Judaism and Hellenism” by Martin Hengel. But Barrett does a good job of citing the sources from which Paige gives his overview of Israel in “The Land and the Book.” In addition, he cites a dream of Archelaus which is very similar to the dream of famine by Pharaoh in Genesis (page 156). He also gives Josephus’ description of Essenes, Sadducees and Pharisees (pages 158-159) and a description of terrorism by the “sicarii” (page 162), which incited the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70.

“Rabbinic Literature and Rabbinic Judaism” shows the process and thought behind the rules and regulations of the rabbis. Statements such as “make a fence around the Law”, which meant, “Make additional commandments in order to safeguard the original commandments; for example, certain acts should be avoided towards the approach of evening on Friday lest one should forget and inadvertently continue to do them on the Sabbath” (pages 177-178) are mentioned here. “Halakah” material in the Talmud “contains specific and authoritative direction for the life of Jewish obedience” (page 184). “Haggadah” was “practical, homiletic, and often imaginative and even fanciful interpretation of Scripture” (page 184). In addition, a fanciful explanation of why the Exodus from Egypt is often quoted is given on page 193. Most significant is the statement that, “The Sabbath is given over to you, not you to the Sabbath” (reminding me of Christ’s comment) is given on page 194. Finally, Barrett refers to proselytes who were circumcised and then baptized (page 208-210) and he also shows literature that refers to Achan as possessing salvation (page 216).

“Qumran” gives a commentary on Habakkuk. “Philo” shows the life, faith and philosophy of a man who lived about 20 BC – AD 45. Barrett refers to “enervated” (debilitated) minds (page 259) and Philo’s doctrine of the logos (page 262).

It is worth mentioning that Josephus did not believe Jesus to be the Christ (page 277) but does mention Jesus, James the Just and John the Baptist.

This was an amazingly engaging book to read and to contemplate in light of the New Testament. I would definitely recommend this book and use it as a reference book in teaching.