David Wenham

Did Jesus teach in Greek?

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The question of whether Jesus spoke and taught in Greek has, at times in the past, been a subject of serious debate. But for some reason this issue has disappeared from serious consideration, at just the time in NT studies which is actually quite hospitable to the suggestion. The fact that Jesus spoke Aramaic is … Continue Reading

Can we hear the voice of Jesus through the voice of Matthew?

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I wrote this chapter titled ‘The Voice of Jesus through the Voice of Matthew and its Pastoral Implications’ for a Festschrift Well Done, Good and Faithful Servant in honour of Stephen Wright, long time tutor in Biblical Studies at Spurgeon’s College in London, and current chair of the Grove Biblical series editorial group. Stephen Wright has offered … Continue Reading

Exploring the New Testament—Third Edition

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Exploring the New Testament was a two-volume introduction to the background, documents and interpretation of the New Testament first published in 2001. The first volume, on the gospels and Acts, was written by David Wenham and Steve Walton and it includes, in my view, the clearest and most helpful summary of the ‘Synoptic problem’ (the … Continue Reading

What is happening in current study of the Gospels and Acts?

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The introductory textbooks Exploring the New Testament are a fantastic one-stop guide to engaging with the gospels and Acts (volume 1) and the letters and Revelation (volume 2). Published by SPCK, volume 1 has just been issued in a third, substantially revised, edition. (The third edition of volume 2, to which I have contributed, will be … Continue Reading

Understanding the Beatitudes in Matthew 5

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The gospel lectionary reading for All Saints’ Day in Year A (this coming Sunday as I write) is Matthew 5.1–12, which is mostly composed of the set sayings of Jesus known as the Beatitudes, a name derived from the Latin translation of the opening term of each, ‘blessed’ or ‘happy’. These sayings are very well … Continue Reading

How do we make sense of the Beatitudes?

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The Beatitudes—the collection of sayings that introduce the ‘Sermon on the Mount’ in Matt 5, with their parallel in Luke 6—are amongst some of the most memorable of the teachings of Jesus. They are often cited as favourite texts, and are referred to as a key element of Jesus’ (challenging and puzzling) radical social ethics. … Continue Reading

The Poetry of the Lord’s Prayer

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I have previously written about the poetic structure of Jesus’ teaching, drawing on examples from the Beatitudes and Jesus’ eschatological teaching at the end of Matthew. In particular, I highlighted David Wenham’s study of the Lord’s Prayer, where he identifies the careful structuring of the prayer as a poem in two parts: 6 words Opening … Continue Reading