Written to Be Heard: Recovering the Messages of the Gospels

by Paul Borgman, Kelly James Clark, Nicholas Wolterstorff (Foreword by)

Overview

Recovers the lost messages of Mark, Matthew, Luke-Acts, and John for people today

The words of the gospels were meant to be heard. While we can still appreciate the construction and grasp some understanding when we read, we miss much of the message because we’re working in the wrong medium. In Written to Be Heard Paul Borgman and Kelly James Clark offer the keys to recovering the radical, relevant messages of each gospel as they were first heard.

The shaping of the gospels for oral performances, which would have been obvious to ancient (mostly preliterate) listeners, is lost on even the best contemporary reader. With careful analysis of the gospel writers’ particular voices within their own ancient literary context, Borgman and Clark equip readers to read as if hearing, focusing on overlapping patterns of hearing cues that shape each text and embed theological perspective.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780802877048
Publisher:	Eerdmans, William B. Publishing Company
Publication date:	03/14/2019
Pages:	389
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x (d)

About the Author

Paul Borgman is professor of English at Gordon College,Wenham, Massachusetts. A specialist in biblical narrative,he is also the author of Genesis: The Story We Haven'tHeard. "


Senior Research Fellow at the Kaufman Interfaith Institute atGrand Valley State University, Grand Rapids, Michigan. Aformer professor of philosophy at Calvin College, he works inphilosophy of religion, ethics, and Chinese thought andculture. His other books include Philosophers WhoBelieve (one of Christianity Today's 1995 Booksof the Year) and Abraham's Children: Liberty andTolerance in an Age of Religious Conflict.


 
Nicholas Wolterstorff is Noah Porter Professor Emeritus of Philosophical Theology at Yale University. Before going to Yale he taught philosophy at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan, for thirty years. His other books include Justice in Love, Educating for Shalom, The God We Worship, and Lament for a Son.

Table of Contents

Foreword Nicholas Wolterstorff ix

Preface xi

Acknowledgments xiii

Introduction

1 Reading What Was Written to Be Heard: The Lost Gospels 3

Part 1 The Gospel of Mark

2 "The Kingdom of God Has Come Near; Repent" (Mark 1:1-4:34) 15

3 "Do You Still Not Perceive or Understand? Are Your Hearts Hardened?" (Mark 4:35-8:21) 26

4 "Who Is the Greatest?" (Mark 8:22-10:52) 36

5 The Son of Man 46

6 "The One Who Endures to the End Will Be Saved" (Mark 11-1-16:8a) 50

Part 2 The Gospel of Matthew

7 "Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven Has Come Near" (Matthew 1:1-4:25) 61

8 "Unless Your Righteousness Exceeds That of the Scribes and Pharisees" (Matthew 5-7; 23-25) 70

9 "Proclaim the Good News, 'The Kingdom of Heaven Has Come Near'" 84

10 Deeds of Power: From Telling to Showing 95

11 "This Is My Blood of the Covenant, Which Is Poured Out for Many" (Matthew 26-28) 109

Part 3 Luke-Acts, I: The Gospel of Luke

12 "So That You May Know the Exact Truth" (Luke 1:1-79) 125

13 "God Has Looked Favorably on His People and Redeemed Them" (Luke 1:13-6:49) 134

14 "Release to the Captives": The Gospel of Jesus Demonstrated, with Its Cost (Luke 4:33-9:50) 145

15 "Things That Make for Peace," Part One: The Goal (Luke 9:51-12:12; 17:1-19:44) 157

16 "Things That Make for Peace," Part Two: The Journey (Luke 12:13-16:31) 172

17 Authority: Who Will Lead Israel? (Luke 19:45-24:53) 186

Part 4 Luke-Acts, II: The Acts of the Apostles

18 "The Rising of Many in Israel" (Acts 1:1-3:26) 199

19 "The Falling of Many in Israel" (Acts 4:1-7:60) 208

20 Gentiles Welcomed: "Anyone Who Fears Him and Does What Is Right" (Acts 8:1-15:21) 219

21 To Fellow Jews and to Greek Gentiles: The Gospel according to Paul (Acts 13:15-41; 17:22-31) 230

22 Paul's Full Gospel: His Only Speech to Believers (Acts 20:18-35) 241

23 Paul's Three Speeches in Self-Defense before the Powers (Acts 22:1-21; 24:10-21; 26:1-23) 246

24 Paul's Repentance, Three Versions (Acts 9:3-19; 22:6-22; 26:1-23) 255

25 Paul's Farewell Speech to Jews: The Focus Now Shifts to Gentiles (Acts 27:1-28:31) 262

Part 5 The Gospel of John

26 The New Creation, Now (John 1:1-51) 269

27 Water to Wine: A Sign Pointing to Transformation, Living Water (John 2:1-4:42) 276

28 Dying, Crippled, Hungry, Terrified: Four More Signs (John 4:46-6:21) 281

29 True Seeing and Resurrection Life: Culminating Symbolic Truths (John 9:1-52; 8:12-11:57) 291

30 The Book of the Hour, Phase One: "The Hour Has Come" (John 13-17) 301

31 The Book of the Hour, Phase Two: "It Is Finished," the Hour Fulfilled (John 18-19) 311

32 "He Breathed on Them and Said to Them, 'Receive the Holy Spirit'" (John 20-21) 317

Notes 327

Bibliography 353

Index of Names and Subjects 355

Index of Scripture References 362

Editorial Reviews

01/28/2019

Positing convincingly that the four gospels—Matthew, Mark, Luke-Acts, and John—were written to be heard, not read, Borgman (David, Saul, and God), professor emeritus at Gordon College, and religion professor Clark (Abraham’s Children) analyze how themes embedded in each text resonate when listened to. The authors contend that the gospel writers constructed their texts as “oral performances” with “hearing cues,” narrative patterns, repetition, rhythm, and other literary constructions that helped original listeners comprehend key ideas, and contemporary readers (lacking this awareness) misinterpret fundamental themes. In extensive detail, the authors examine the narrative devices each writer employs. Employing an “authority-response” pattern throughout his gospel, Mark heightens the cautionary tale about true discipleship. From his opening genealogy (which is usually skimmed while reading) Matthew tells the story of the “next (and last) chapter in Jewish history,” framing his gospel with examples of how Jesus’ life and teaching offer fulfillments of Scripture. Luke and Acts, considered as a two-volume text, offer parallel stories, which can be performed sequentially so that prophesies in Luke are fulfilled in Acts. And in his opening intricate poem, John presents his gospel’s major theme: that believers will have power “to become children of God.” In excavating the gospel narratives’ intricate structure, this perceptive work of scholarship reveals thematic nuances long overlooked by Christian readers. (Mar.)

Publishers Weekly

Review of Biblical Literature
“Written to Be Heard should be given serious consideration by those interested in narrative-, redactional-, or performance-critical matters pertaining to the gospels and Acts.

From the Publisher