The NT Blog and the NT Pod finally get ref-tagged!

I have been meaning to add Logos's RefTagger to this blog for as long as I can remember and finally I have got round to it. The gist is that you add a little bit of code to your template, and it automatically brings all your Biblical references to life. So if I want to refer to Mark 15:39, for example, reftagger hyperlinks the reference and sends it to bible.logos.com. It does it with whole passages too, e.g. Matthew 1:1-17, and it seems to work in a range of formats, e.g. with either the dot (Matthew 1.1-17) or the colon. Impressive, huh? I've added it to the NT Pod's web page too, where I always list the key texts for each podcast in the given entry.

Logos Lecture: Messiah and King

Over on the Logos Bible Software Blog, there is a nice note headed Mark Goodacre is Coming to Town concerning my Logos Lecture next Monday in Bellingham, WA. The title is "Did Jews in Jesus' day expect the Messiah?" Since I am busy preparing the lecture at the moment (with the Test Match on in the background, of course, with England faltering a little on 166 for 5, having been on a commanding 112 for 1 at lunch), here is a taster of the argument of the paper:

Did Jews in Jesus’ day expect the Messiah? Yes, many of them did, but the term “Messiah” is not as important in the literature as the term “King”, and the question which we really should be answering in the affirmative is: Did some Jews in Jesus’ day expect a new Davidic King? Old Testament texts commonly reinterpreted as pointing to a future Messiah are actually speaking about the restoration of the Davidic monarchy. Other Jewish texts, both those that predate the New Testament and those contemporary with the New Testament, are also speaking about the restoration of the Davidic monarchy. They are prophesying the arrival of a new King in David’s line. Where the term “Messiah” occurs, it is used as an eschatological synonym for “King”. The term “Messiah” only took on decisive importance in emergent Christianity, where it was used to express the notion that the story of salvation was not yet complete. God’s Anointed was born of David’s line, had died for people’s sins, was raised from the dead and exalted to heaven. In the future, at the end, Jesus would return as King.

Logos Lecture: Did Jews in Jesus' Day Expect the Messiah?

Thanks to Jim West for mentioning that I have been invited to speak in the Logos Bible Software Lecture Series. Here is my title, abstract and details from the previously mentioned page:

June 11, 2007
Did Jews in Jesus' Day Expect the Messiah?

It is popularly assumed that the Judaism of Jesus' day had a clear, well-defined expectation of a Messiah figure whom God would send to liberate them with military might. It is then assumed that early Christians, and perhaps Jesus himself, revised this expectation and proclaimed a different kind of Messiah, one who was to suffer. But how accurate is this picture? Does it explain the evidence found in the Hebrew Scriptures, early Jewish texts and the New Testament? Or should we instead think of a great variety of expectations, as many scholars argue? In this lecture, we will revisit the term "Messiah", exploring evidence that it was used as a synonym for a new Davidic "king" or "ruler". When the first Christians called Jesus "Messiah", they were speaking not only about past events and present beliefs, but also about his future return as king.

Dr. Goodacre is an Associate Professor in New Testament in the Department of Religion at Duke University. He earned his M.A., M.Phil. and Ph.D. at the University of Oxford and was Senior Lecturer at the University of Birmingham until 2005. His research interests include the Synoptic Gospels, the Historical Jesus and the Gospel of Thomas.

Each Logos Lecture Series event is free and open to the public. Dr. Goodacre's lecture will begin at 7:00 PM at Mount Baker Theatre in downtown Bellingham, WA.
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Jim asks about the possibility of a recording. From my side, I have no problem with that, though I leave it to the Logos folk to see whether they wish to do that. I hope to make the full text of my lecture available in due course.

On subject matter, I will have more to say here in due course too. The key to what I wish to say is largely contained in the last sentence of the abstract above.

SBL / Logos Technology Paper Awards deadline fast approaching

Michael Heiser emails to ask that I (and other bloggers) post a reminder about the SBL / Logos Technology Paper Awards. The deadline of 1 May 2007 is fast approaching. Details are available here:

Logos Bible Software and Society of Biblical Literature Technology Paper Awards

The link explains the awards as follows, and provides all the other relevant information:

Logos Bible Software and the Society of Biblical Literature announce two sets of awards for papers that creatively use technology in exploring questions of grammar and syntax in biblical studies: one focusing on the Hebrew Bible, the other on the Greek New Testament. The contests are open to all those engaged in the study of those disciplines, and prizes will be awarded in both areas for student and faculty/professional categories. A total of twelve awards will be given.