About the Book:

The Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels is unique among reference books on the Bible, the first volume of its kind since James Hastings published his Dictionary of Christ and the Gospels in 1909. In the more than eight decades since Hastings our understanding of Jesus, the Evangelists and their world has grown remarkably. New interpretive methods have illumined the text, the ever-changing profile of modern culture has put new questions to the Gospels, and our understanding of the Judaism of Jesus' day has advanced in ways that could not have been predicted in Hasting's day. But for many readers of the Gospels the new outlook on the Gospels remains hidden within technical journals and academic monographs.

The Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels bridges the gap between scholars and those pastors, teachers, students and lay people desiring in-depth treatment of select topics in an accesible and summary format. The topics range from cross-sectional themes (such as faith, law, Sabbath) to methods of interpretation (such as form criticism, redaction criticism, and death of Jesus) to each of the four Gospels as a whole. Some articles--such as the Dead Sea Scrolls, rabbinic traditions and revolutionary movements at the time of Jesus--provide significant background information to the Gospels. Others reflect recent and less familiar issues in Jesus and Gospel studies, such as divine man, ancient rhetoric and the chreiai (aphorisms).

Contemporary concerns of general interest are discussed in articles covering such topics as healing, the demonic and the historical reliability of the Gospels. And for those entrusted with communicating the message of the Gospels, there is an extensive article on preaching from the Gospels.

The Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels presents the fruit of evangelical New Testament scholarship at the end of the twentieth century--committed to the authority of Scripture, utilizing the best of critical methods, and maintaining dialog with contemporary scholarship and challenges facing the church.

Features & Benefits:

"A splendid achievement! Thanks to some careful and innovative editorial planning and execution, this volume fills a large gap in recent literature on the Gospels and their christologies....The time is surely ripe to harvest the gains of academic study over the past several decades when evangelical scholars have played a notable role....The book will take its place on the shelf and desk of all alert ministers, hard-pressed students and even circumspect professors!"

"This reference work harvests the fruit of the best contemporary evangelical scholarship on the Gospels. Students who seek a responsible, critically conservative perspective on the Gospel traditions will find a rich source of information here. The up-to-date selective bibliographies make this volume especially valuable as a teaching tool."

"What James Hastings' famous Dictionary of Christ and the Gospels did for the early twentieth century, IVP's stunning Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels has done for the late twentieth and early twenty-first century--provide an authoritative treatment of all the major historical and theological themes found in the four Gospels. Since the contributors write in fields of their demostrated expertise, often articles summarize a mongraph the author has written; one finds, for example, Blomberg writing on 'Historical Reliability,' Bruce on 'Canon,' Danker on 'Benefactor,' Hoehner on 'Chronology,' Osborne on 'Resurrection,' Riesner on 'Teacher,' Stein on the 'Synoptic Problem,' Travis on 'Judgement,' Trites on 'Witness,' and Wilkins on 'Disciples.' Being user-friendly with its clear format, extensive bibliographies, and uncluttered English, the Dictionary will prove a splendid tool not only for pastors and teachers but also for students and laypersons."

"...I am impressed by the breadth of research and the care with which evidence is weighed and conclusions are stated....This volume makes readily available virtually all of the relevant data and presents summaries of the major conclusions that characterize comtemporary Gospel scholarship. Clearly written, it will be especially useful for the pastor who wishes to be reliably informed on these matters."

"Scholarly, yet nontechnical--and written from the standpoint of orthodox Christian belief--this outstanding Dictionary harvests the fruits of contemporary research into Jesus and the Gospels for the benefit of pastors, seminarians and the general public."

"The DJG is a superb resource for the study of the Gospels. Because they are limited to Jesus and the Gospels these excellent articles can be much longer than is typically the case in reference works. The contributors represent the finest contemporary scholarship and are often among the leading authorities on the subjects they have been assigned. This is a reference volume that every serious student of the Gospels will be grateful to own and use."