Studies in Matthew

"These erudite essays by one of the foremost Matthean scholars of our day show how illuminating it can be to consult the history of interpretation and, in particular, the patristic commentators when it comes to the exegesis of the Gospel of Matthew. We can find fresh insights and new understandings by looking back to how earlier interpreters dealt with the material. These stimulating essays provide abundant hermeneutical insights into the interpretive process itself--all under the wise and mature judgment of a seasoned exegete. This book is therefore not only for Matthean specialists but will prove rewarding for all who are interested in biblical interpretation."

"Dale Allison has been widely recognized as a leading interpreter of the Gospel of Matthew since the completion of the International Critical Commentary in 1997, and with the publication of Studies in Matthew he establishes and enhances his eminence. Colleagues and knowledgeable readers will be informed by his erudition and impressed by his selective appropriation of the insights of predecessors from the nineteenth century back through the patristic period. He is also sensitive to the importance and breadth of historical issues, as well as matters of theological relevance. Although Allison is obviously not writing for beginners, his style is clear and accessible, so that one is never left wondering what he is thinking."

"I have been telling friends for years that Dale Allison is North America's most complete New Testament scholar. This book proves it. Here Allison navigates not only the deep waters of the historical-critical method but also the refreshing pools suddenly being discovered among the patristics and Eastern Orthodox. Scholars and pastors will find something to ponder on each and every page. Just when I thought Dale had moved on to other topics, here he is again, setting the record straight about Matthew."

"Dale Allison is the premier Matthew specialist of his generation in the United States. He is endowed with an amazing erudition that embraces not only the professional literature of the last two centuries but also the tradition of interpretation of the ancient and medieval church, East and West. This gift is richly in evidence in this new collection of mostly unpublished essays, including several reflecting a particular interest in the opening and closing chapters of Matthew--infancy, Sermon on the Mount, passion. Allison writes with the head of a scholar but also with the heart of a believer who wrestles with pain and loss, violence and murder. His struggle is illumined by Scripture and aware of the presence of angels."

"Dale Allison, author of the finest English commentary on Matthew, here supplements that monumental work with thirteen studies on the Gospel, marked throughout by the same patient, perceptive scholarship. In part one he shows--in at times surprising ways--why contemporary interpreters cannot afford to neglect the exegetical past. Part two reminds us why his own are among the shoulders on which subsequent interpreters of Matthew must stand. This will make rewarding reading for all students of the Gospel."