A Narratological Reading of 1 Peter (Library of New Testament Studies): 440

Joseph, Dr Abson Prédestin

ISBN 10: 0567166252 / ISBN 13: 9780567166258

Published by T.& T.Clark Ltd, 2012

About this Item

Seller Inventory # V9780567166258

Bibliographic Details

• Title: A Narratological Reading of 1 Peter (Library of New Testament Studies): 440
• Publisher: T.& T.Clark Ltd
• Publication Date: 2012
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0567166252
• ISBN 13: 9780567166258
• Binding: Hardcover
• Condition: New

About this title

Synopsis

Employing a narratological approach Abson Joseph links the structure of 1 Peter with God's actions on behalf of Israel. Using a three-layered distinction of narrative – fabula ('raw material'), story, and text – Joseph studies the text of 1 Peter and shows the presence of a fabula that comprises four main elements: election, suffering, steadfastness, and vindication. Joseph asserts that this fabula is common to the experiences of Israel, Jesus, and the epistle's audience and thus shapes the narrative substructure of the epistle and constitutes the lens through which the author urges his audience to make sense of its situation.

Joseph argues the author of 1 Peter urges the audience to view suffering only as a temporary experience that befalls the elect. Suffering is to be met with faithful response for God vindicates the righteous sufferer. The narrative substructure provides evidence of God's vindication of righteous sufferers, serves as basis for the author's exhortations to the audience, and substantiates his claims about God's ability to vindicate those who remain steadfast in the face of suffering.

About the Authors

Associate Professor of New Testament, Indiana Wesleyan University, USA.

Chris Keith is Research Professor of New Testament and Early Christianity at MF Norwegian School of Theology, Religion and Society, Norway. He is the author of The Pericope Adulterae, the Gospel of John and the Literacy of Jesus, a winner of the 2010 John Templeton Award for Theological Promise, and Jesus' Literacy: Scribal Culture and the Teacher from Galilee. He is also the co-editor of Jesus among Friends and Enemies: A Historical and Literary Introduction to Jesus in the Gospels, and was recently named a 2012 Society of Biblical Literature Regional Scholar.