Western Seminary

Portland, Oregon

 

OTS 561F/661F

Early Hebrew Exegesis

 

 

2-credit hour

Fall Semester 2004

Dr. Verbruggen

 

Syllabus

Course Description

To any text that we read we apply a certain method of interpretation, or even a rudimentary form of exegesis.  Quite a few rules handed down to us in hermeneutical classes or exegesis classes have a long history.  In this class, we will attempt to examine the various method of interpretation which were used in the early years of the formation of the Tanak, Judaism and Christianity.  What were the seven rules of Hillel and how do they apply to us?  From where do the 13 rules of Rabbi Ishmael come?  How did the community of Qumran read their Bible?  Are there any clues in the Scriptures on how we are supposed to interpret the Scriptures?  These and other topics will be dealt with in this class.

Course Text Books

Required

Richard N. Longenecker, Biblical Exegesis in the Apostolic Period, (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1975)

Course Goals

  1. To gain an understanding of the history of interpretation and exegesis during the time of the formation of the Church
  2. To gain a better understanding how the New Testament interpreted the Old Testament
  3. To understand better how different biblical authors were using the scriptures.
  4. To explore and examine our own method of interpretation and evaluate how we can do a better job in Exegeting texts.

Course Requirements

  1. Read through Longenecker’s Biblical Exegesis in the Apostolic Period (10 hours).

 

  1. The reading of a number of articles given in class (±200 pages)(12 hours)

 

  1. Participate fully in the class discussions

 

  1. A paper (8-10 pages, single spaced) dealing with the application of the exegetical rules to a passage (student’s choice) with a clear description of the rules used (18 hours).

Course Evaluation

Point Distribution

  1. Completion of Course reading and Book report of the reading 20%

 

  1. Paper 40%.

 

  1. Class Participation 20%

 

  1. Reading of articles (20%)

Grading Scale:

A+                    A                         A-  

99-100%           95-98%                94-93%            

 

B+                    B                         B-

92-91%             90-88%                87-86%

 

C+                    C                         C-

85-84%             83-81%                80-79%            

 

D+                    D                         D-

78-77%             76-74%                73-70%