This monograph explores the significance accorded to John's island of Patmos (Rev. 1:9) within the wider reception history of the Apocalypse. In contrast to the relatively scant attention paid to John's island in modern commentaries, this reception-historical survey reveals both the greater prominence accorded to Patmos by earlier interpreters, and the richer diversity of readings the text has provoked. These include interest in the physical character of Patmos and its significance as an island; the date and reason for John's sojourn there; attempts to locate Patmos in a geography which is...

The SCM Study Guide to "New Testament Interpretation," together with its companion volume on "New Testament Books," offers an up-to-date, accessible introduction to this fast-changing area of theological study. Aimed at level one students, it encourages interaction with the New Testament texts and provides pointers for further reading and learning. It covers the main areas tackled in introductory New Testament courses, such as the contents and diversity of the New Testament, how the texts came to be written and collected, their relationship to Jesus of Nazareth, and the nature of the canon....

George Caird's commentary in this series was a masterpiece of clarity and accessibility, but it many respects it is now dated. This book contains a far more substantial introduction, a greater exploration of revelation as a visionary text and pays more attention to the overall structure of the work. Following the example of Morna Hooker in Mark, Dr Boxall includes excurses tackling subjects such as numerology, the number of the beast and the Millennium. Here is a contemporary commentary which brings fresh understanding to a most controversial book in the Bible.

This introduction to the interpretation of Matthew aims to encourage in-depth study of the text, and genuine grappling with the theological and historical questions raised, by providing a 'map' to the Gospel as a whole, and to key interpreters and interpretative debates. It draws on a range of methodological approaches (author-, text- and reader-centred), as complementary rather than mutually exclusive ways of interpreting the text. In particular, this new introduction reflects the growing scholarly attention to the reception history of biblical texts, increasingly viewed as a vital aspect of...