Linguistic Analysis of the Greek New Testament: Studies in Tools, Methods, and Practice

by Stanley E. Porter

In this volume, a leading expert brings readers up to date on the latest advances in New Testament Greek linguistics. Stanley Porter brings together a number of different studies of the Greek of the New Testament under three headings: texts and tools for analysis, approaching analysis, and doing analysis. He deals with a variety of New Testament texts, including the Synoptic Gospels, John, and Paul. This volume distills a senior scholar's expansive writings on various subjects, making it an essential book for scholars of New Testament Greek and a valuable supplemental textbook for New Testament Greek exegesis courses.

Genres: Language, New Testament, Linguistics

448 pages, Paperback

First published March 17, 2015

About the author

Stanley E. Porter (PhD, University of Sheffield) is president, dean, and professor of New Testament, and Roy A. Hope Chair in Christian Wolrdview at McMaster Divinity College in Hamilton, Ontario. He has authored or edited dozens of books, including How We Got the New Testament and Fundamentals of New Testament Greek.

Reviews

[Tim Hazelbaker · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some really helpful information. Some went way over my head. Is it me, or does Stanley Porter hate everything?

[Justin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overly technical with some interesting insights in between.

[Ethan · Rating 3 out of 5]

A wide-ranging explorations of many subjects related to the understanding of the Koine Greek text of the New Testament at the discourse level.

The book has 4 parts and seems to be mostly a compilation of essays and other subjects of interest to the author. He is very much a fan of systemic functional linguistics and clearly has a combative relationship with the rest of NT Greek scholarship. He also has a very high opinion of his views.

I have enough understanding of Koine Greek to follow most of his arguments but am not up to date enough with the scholarship to be able to fully assess just how meritorious his various arguments are. I appreciated his exploration of 1 Timothy 2:8; on the other hand, the very narrow way of addressing Jesus' restoration of Peter in John 21 show the failings of any form of exegesis taking only text blocks into account.

If you're big into discourse analysis, the influence of modern linguistic theories on the understanding of Koine Greek, and/or big into NT Greek studies, this is for you.

**--galley received as part of early review program

[Thomas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Porter many times brings up some interesting ideas and criticism. For example his criticism of lexicons is helpful. That said some of his criticisms are unneeded. for example, he criticizes Danker because BDAG and Danker recommend the reader translate "Ἰουδαῖοι" as the loan word gloss "Judean" instead of Jew. While i understand and agree with most of porters criticism; I find this unfair since Danker would have grown up in German culture pre WW2. I feel he does not understand that Europe historically was very anti-Semitic and thus to reduce biblical confusion Danker recommends the gloss. His section on aspect is OK (but I prefer Constantine Campbell). Finally, his section on Greek word order is helpful but nothing to get excited about. This book is not worth buying, just borrow it from a library.

[Michael Dionne]

Unapproachable in many instances, unless one has a deep understanding of linguistic studies. Porter exhibits a haughty attitude towards other scholars that is off-putting and makes his own scholarship less palpable.

[Guilherme Nunes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Vale ouro!