Do we really know who wrote the New Testament documents? Do we really know when they were written? Scholars have long debated these fundamental questions. This volume identifies and investigates literary traditions and their implications for the authorship and dating of the Gospels and the letters of the New Testament. Departing from past scholarship, E. Earle Ellis argues that the Gospels and the letters are products of the corporate authorship of four allied apostolic missions and not just the creation of individual authors. The analysis of literary traditions also has...

Who was John? What was his world? What was his purpose in writing? In this brief but helpful survey of the background, purpose, plan, and teaching of the Johannine literature, E. Earle Ellis guides the reader to a better understanding and a fuller appreciation of the Gospel and the Epistles of John. Ellis shows that John was a "theologican in his own right with roots in primitive Christianity as deep as Paul's." He sees John as an "inspired interpreter" of the mind of Christ who stands on good historical ground. Written in clear, concise terminology, The World of St. John is written for...

This book is a sequel to the author's "The Making of the New Testament Documents (Brill, 1999), placing it within the context of two centuries of research and then expanding its brief treatment of a number of important issues. It critiques the hypothesis of 'innocent' apostolic pseudepigrapha and investigates historical and literary evidence for dating the New Testament books, for Paul's mission to Spain, and for his subsequent composition of the Pastoral epistles. It also gives extended attention to the identity and the roles of Paul's co-workers.
With respect to preformed traditions, a...