Table of Contents

Contributors xiii Abbreviations xvii The Artists xix Introduction by Craig G. Bartholomew xxi 1. From Speech Acts to Scripture Acts: The 1 Covenant of Discourse and the Discourse of Covenant Kevin J. Vanhoozer Introduction: Language in Jerusalem and Athens 1 The Covenant of Discourse: Speech Acts 4 The Discourse of Covenant: Canonical Action 31 Conclusion: The Covenant Community 44 Summary of Theses 46 2. Ricoeur, Speech-act Theory, and the Gospels 50 as History Dan R. Stiver The Gospels between History and Fiction 52 Ricoeur’s Interweaving of History and Fiction 55 Speech-act Theory’s Integration of History and Fiction 62 An Interweaving of Ricoeur and Austin 67 3. The Promise of Speech-act Theory for 73 Biblical Interpretation Nicholas Wolterstorff Where We Are Now in Theory of Interpretation 73 The Promise of Authorial-Discourse Interpretation for Biblical 82 Interpretation Interpreting Scripture for Divine Discourse is ‘Dogmatic’ 85 Interpretation Objections and Answers to Objections 87 Should We Practice Divine-Discourse Interpretation? 89 4. How to Be a Postmodernist and Remain a 91 Christian: A Responce to Nicholas Wolterstorff Mary Hesse 5. ‘Behind’ and ‘In Front Of’ the Text: Language, 97 Reference and Indeterminacy Anthony C. Thiselton The Metaphorical Force of ‘Behind’ and ‘In Front Of ’ in 97 Hermeneutics Why is there Dissatisfaction with Representational or Referential 102 Accounts of Texts and Language? Is there Still Value in Drawing Distinctions between Worlds 107 ‘Behind’ the Text and ‘In Front Of ’ the Text? The Conflict between Consumerist Hermeneutics and Both 111 Theism and Reasonableness: Two Sides of the Case? Concluding Postscript 116 6. A ‘Polite’ Response to Anthony Thiselton 121 William Olhausen Language, Meaning and Theology 122 Politeness 125 Biblical Interpretation and the Holy Spirit 127 Conclusion 129 7. Before Babel and After Pentecost: Language, 131 Literature and Biblical Interpretation Craig G. Bartholomew Summary of Argument 131 Introduction 132 Origins and Development of the Modern and Late Modern 132 Debate about Language Relevance of this Debate to Biblical Interpretation 134 Derrida, Language and Biblical Interpretation 139 Postmodernism as Confronting Us with Our Ultimate or Religious 142 Orientations Towards the World and Language Scripture and Language 147 Theology and Language, and Biblical Interpretation 151 Conclusion 163 8. Language at the Frontiers of Language 171 Gregory J. Laughery Introduction 171 Religious Language versus Other Types of Language 173 Should Scripture be Read as any Other Book or in a Special Manner? 183 Conclusion 189 9. ‘Starting a Rockslide’ - Deconstructing History 195 and Language via Christological Detonators Colin J.D. Greene Introduction 195 Apocalyptic and the Metaphor of the Kingdom of God 196 The Meaning of Apocalyptic and Eschatology within Recent 198 Biblical Scholarship Jesus, Apocalyptic and the Kingdom of God 201 The Early Christian Communities, Apocalyptic and the Kingdom 205 of God Further Implications for the Philosophy of History 209 Further Implications for the Philosophy of Language 215 10. Words of Power: Biblical Language and 224 Literary Criticism with Reference to Stephen Prickett’s Words and the Word and Mark 1:21-28 Stephen I. Wright The Transparent Text? 225 Religious and Poetic Language 229 The Prophet and the Poet 231 ‘Disconfirmation’ and Revelation 234 Metaphor and Reality 236 11. Reviving the Power of Biblical Language: 241 The Bible, Literature and Literary Language Brian D. Ingraffia and Todd E. Pickett General and Special Hermeneutics in Vanhoozer and Ricoeur 243 (Ingraffia) Informing and Reforming the Scriptural Imagination: The Guest 248 in Parable and Poetry (Pickett) Reforming or Deforming the Scriptural Imagination 259 12. Naming the Father: The Teaching Authority 263 of Jesus and Contemporary Debate David L. Jeffrey Religious Language versus Other Types of Language 173 Should Scripture be Read as any Other

About the Author

Craig G. Bartholomew (PhD, University of Bristol) is the director of the Kirby Laing Centre for Public Theology in Cambridge, England. He is the author and editor of numerous books, including Divine Action in Hebrews, Listening to Scripture, and The Scripture and Hermeneutics Seminar: Retrospect and Prospect.

Colin Greene is head of theology and public policy at the British and Foreign Bible Society and visiting professor of systematic and philosophical theology at Seattle Pacific University. He is the author of Christology and Atonement in Historical Context and the forthcoming Making Out the Horizons: Christ in Cultural Perspective. Karl Möller is lecturer in theology and religious studies at St. Martin's College, Lancaster, and senior tutor at the Carlisle and Blackburn Diocesan Training Institute. He is the author of A Prophet in Debate: The Rhetoric of Persuasion in the Book of Amos. He has also co-edited Renewing Biblical Interpretation and After Pentecost: Language and Biblical Interpretation.