The New Testament and Other Early Christian Writings: A Reader

By: Bart D. Ehrman

Book Overview

The twenty-seven books of the New Testament were not the only writings produced by early Christians. Nor were they the only ones to be accepted, at one time or another, as sacred Scripture. Unfortunately, nearly all the other early Christian writings have been lost or destroyed. But approximately twenty-five books written at about the same time as the New Testament have survived, books that reveal the rich diversity of early Christian views about God, Jesus, the world, salvation, ethics, and ritual practice.
This reader presents, for the first time in one volume, every Christian writing known to have been produced during the first hundred years of the church (30-130 C.E.). In addition to the New Testament itself, it includes other early non-canonical Gospels, Acts, Epistles, and Apocalypses, as well as additional important writings, such as those of the Apostolic Fathers. Each text is provided in an up-to-date and readable translation (including the NRSV for the New Testament), and introduced with a succinct and incisive discussion of its author, date of composition, and overarching themes. With an opening overview which shows how the canon of the New Testament came to be formulated-- the process by which some Christian books came to be regarded as sacred Scripture whereas others came to be excluded--this accessible reader will meet the needs of students, scholars, and general readers alike. An ideal primary text for courses in the New Testament, Christian Origins, and Early Church History, it can be used in conjunction with a companion volume, the author's The New Testament: A Historical Introduction to the Early Christian Writings, 2/e (OUP, 1999).

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0195111923
• ISBN13: 9780195111927
• Release Date: August 1997
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Length: 416 Pages
• Weight: 1.61 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.2" x 0.8" x 7.4"

Customer Reviews

Great Resource

For me, the most interesting part are the non-NT texts. It would be nice if there was a bit more commentary and explanation, but Ehrman has a lot of other great books that fill this void.

A helpful guide but more explanatory notes would be useful

I bought this book to learn more about the events and issues of early Christianity from the actual texts that have survived from that period. The book includes up to date translations of the 27 books of the New Testament and of 26 other non canonical books which are believed to have been written within a hundred years of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. There is a brief 6 page introduction on the development of early Christianty, followed by the translations themselves. These are divided into sections which are consistent with the order of the books in the New Testament itself. That is: * Early Christian Gospels - the 4 New Testament books followed by eight others * Early Christian Acts - Acts of the Apostles followed by two other writings * Early Christian Letters attributed to Paul - the 13 canonical epistles plus one other epistle * General Epistles & Other early Christian writings - the 8 canonical epistles plus 13 others * Early Christian Apcalypses - Revelations plus 2 other much loved apocalpytic books of the early period Each book is provided with a brief introduction describing the content and purpose of the book, and identifying the purported author and probable date of its writing. The 27 books of the New Testament are from the New Revised Standard version Bible of 1989, while 17 of the 26 non canonical books are translations by the author himself. 8 books are from the Apocryphal New Testament translated by J K Elliott and published in 1993, and one, the Gospel of Thomas, is from the Nag Hammadi Library translated by Thomas Lambdin and published in 1988. My reactions in reading this book are decidedly mixed. On the one hand, I wanted something which was readable, which it certainly is, and I certainly wanted to read the texts which were unfamiliar to me and to gain some understanding of the context of the times in which they were written. But on the other hand, I also wanted some explanation of what it was that I was reading. This book was certainly successful in illuminating my mind on the first goal, but much less so on the second. Perhaps I should have chosen one of the other books by Professor Ehrman - either "The New Testament: A Historical Introduction to the Early Christian Writings" or perhaps "Lost Scriptures: Books That Did Not Make It Into the New Testament". Be that it may, I certainly got many benefits from reading the book. In order to understand what I was reading, I really had to read the books from a different perspective. For example, I had never noted the many similarities and differences in the Gospels and in the Epistles before, with respect to the events as well as the issues which the Apostles had to address in establishing the new faith in the cities of the Middle East, Asia Minor, and other parts of the Roman Empire, and I had never really properly absorbed the content of Revelations. I found it absolutely necessary to have my own Bible close at hand, and to develop a workfile on my PC to summarize t

New Testament Plus

Why buy a book of readings when you can buy the New Testament and get the selections there? Reason # 1 Bart Ehrman. Ehrman is an exceptional scholar, so the inclusion of his commentaries and translations is well worth the price of the book. Reason # 2. This book has more than the 27 chapters of the NT, and includes some heretofore neglected manuscripts that are not easily obtainable elsewhere (e.g., Epistle of Barnabas, Infancy Gospel of Thomas).

ther Early Christian Writings : A Reader

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