Numa Verse

Biblical studiesWhat does the text say?

New Testament

What is New Testament?

New Testament studies is the scholarly study of the 27 writings that form the second part of the Christian Bible. It asks how the texts arose in the Greek, Roman and Jewish world of the first century, and how they have been and are read. Its working core is the exegesis of individual texts in their original Koine Greek.

  • 150Sources
  • 8Traditions
  • 16Dated entries
  • 10Minutes

Study v1.1, 14 October 2026

At a glance

Why it matters for reading Scripture

The Gospels, Acts, the letters and Revelation, with the scholarship on each. Most questions about Jesus and the early church start here.

What the study found

New Testament studies is the historical and interpretive study of the 27 writings, centred on the Greek text, and the critical text itself is still being refined as the Editio Critica Maior proceeds.

Where traditions divide

The Synoptic problem, dating and authorship, the historical Jesus, Paul and Judaism, and early Christology stay contested, with serious scholars in every tradition holding the main positions.

How the traditions compare

  • Catholic

    Holds that historical study is required and is done within the faith of the Church, and that the Gospels formed in three stages, from Jesus to the evangelists.

    Interpretation is subject finally to the judgment of the Church. The 1964 instruction of the Pontifical Biblical Commission accepts the sound elements of form criticism while rejecting philosophical premises that deny miracle and prophecy, and Verbum Domini (2010) holds historical-critical study necessary, because faith concerns history, but insufficient by itself.

    Sources1–5
  • Eastern Orthodox

    Holds that Scripture lives within the Church and its Tradition, and that the Church is its interpreter.

    Stylianopoulos holds that the exegetical level should ideally be simply biblical rather than confessional, and that traditions differ at the hermeneutical level, where Scripture is read within Tradition. Its voices include Florovsky, Stylianopoulos, Breck and the Oxford Handbook of the Bible in Orthodox Christianity (2022).

    Sources6–10
  • Oriental Orthodox

    Keeps commentary traditions in West Syriac and in Ge'ez and Amharic, the andəmta, which offer several readings for different readers.

    Its voices include Ephrem, shared by all the Syriac churches, and Dionysios bar Salibi, and the andəmta has been studied in a Hamburg project from 2025. The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church counts the 27 books in its narrower canon and adds church-order writings, such as the Sinodos and the Book of the Covenant, in its broader canon.

    Sources11–15
  • Church of the East

    Keeps the East Syriac commentary tradition, which follows the historical reading of Theodore of Mopsuestia, known in it as the Interpreter.

    Isho'dad of Merv (fl. c. 850), bishop of Hdatta, is among its commentators.

    Sources1116–17
  • Mainline Protestant

    Practices historical-critical exegesis in university faculties, with a hermeneutical aim, and German faculties set much of the modern agenda.

    German Protestant faculties still teach the classical subjects of Old Testament, New Testament, church history, systematic theology and practical theology. Its representative voices include Bultmann, Käsemann, Bornkamm and Conzelmann.

    Sources18–20
  • Evangelical

    Practices grammatical-historical exegesis with a high view of Scripture.

    The Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy (1978) is one influential formulation: it locates authority in the inerrant autographic text, and its Article XVIII rejects source inquiry that relativizes or dehistoricizes the text. Its representative bodies include the Evangelical Theological Society (1949), which affirms the inerrancy of the autographs, the Institute for Biblical Research (1973) and Tyndale House.

    Sources21–24
  • Pentecostal

    Reads Spirit, Scripture and community together, with experience tested by the text, so that the Spirit is one of the poles of interpretation.

    Its works include Stronstad on Luke (1984), J. C. Thomas (1994) and Keener's Spirit Hermeneutics (2016), and the Society for Pentecostal Studies dates from 1970.

    Sources25–28
  • Jewish scholarship on the New Testament

    Is not a confessional reading: Jewish scholars read the New Testament in its Jewish context and as part of Jewish history.

    The Jewish Annotated New Testament, edited by Amy-Jill Levine and Marc Zvi Brettler, brought together some eighty Jewish scholars in its second edition, and Géza Vermes presented Jesus as a Galilean holy man in Jesus the Jew (1973). The Hebrew University's Center for the Study of Christianity describes itself as secular.

    Sources29–31

How the field developed

  1. Early church
    232 to c. 250

    Origen writes his commentaries on John and Matthew at Caesarea, the first systematic commentary on the Gospels.32

  2. Late antiquity
    367

    Athanasius' Festal Letter 39 gives the first list identical to the 27 books of the New Testament.33

  3. Reformation
    1516

    Erasmus publishes the Novum Instrumentum at Basel on 1 March, the first published Greek New Testament, with a new Latin version.34

  4. Modern
    1707

    John Mill's Greek New Testament, with some 30,000 variants, makes the scale of textual variation visible.35

  5. Modern
    1774 to 1778

    Lessing publishes the fragments of Hermann Samuel Reimarus, conventionally taken as the beginning of the historical Jesus question, which entered the field from outside the churches.36

  6. Modern
    1838 and 1863

    Weisse and Holtzmann set out the two-source hypothesis: the priority of Mark and the sayings source Q.3738

  7. Modern
    1881

    Westcott and Hort publish The New Testament in the Original Greek, a text built mainly on Vaticanus and Sinaiticus after 28 years of work, which displaced the received text.3940

  8. Modern
    1906

    Albert Schweitzer's Von Reimarus zu Wrede shows that the nineteenth-century Lives of Jesus projected their authors' ideals, and marks the end of them.4142

  9. Modern
    1919 to 1921

    Karl Ludwig Schmidt, Martin Dibelius and Rudolf Bultmann apply form criticism to the Gospels and open the study of the oral prehistory of the tradition.432044

  10. Modern
    1938

    The Society for New Testament Studies is founded at Selly Oak, Birmingham, on 14 to 16 September, an international learned society.45

  11. Modern
    1945 and 1947

    The Nag Hammadi codices and the first Dead Sea Scrolls are found, new sources for early Christianity and its Jewish setting.4647

  12. Modern
    1953

    Ernst Käsemann's lecture opens the new quest for the historical Jesus.48

  13. Modern
    1965

    The Second Vatican Council's Dei Verbum, of 18 November, endorses historical study within the faith of the Church.2

  14. Modern
    1977 and 1982

    E. P. Sanders's Paul and Palestinian Judaism sets out covenantal nomism, and James D. G. Dunn's lecture "The New Perspective on Paul" gives the new reading of Paul its name.4950

  15. Modern
    1997

    The first part of the Editio Critica Maior, on James, appears: a new critical edition with the full evidence.51

  16. Modern
    2025

    The sixth edition of the United Bible Societies' Greek New Testament takes its text of Mark, Acts and Revelation from the Editio Critica Maior, and the 29th Nestle-Aland edition is in preparation.525354

How to study New Testament

The questions it asks

  • How did the texts arise in the Greek, Roman and Jewish world of the first century, and how have they been and are they read?551856
  • What is the literary relationship of Matthew, Mark and Luke?5758
  • When were the Gospels written, and which of the letters are Paul's own?596061
  • What can historical method recover of Jesus from the sources?62
  • How does Paul relate to the Judaism of his day?63
  • How early was Jesus worshipped?6465

Its method

Start
  1. Establish the text first: no autograph of any New Testament book survives, and modern editions aim at the initial text, the earliest form the surviving evidence allows editors to reach66.

  2. Read the text in Greek: the working core of the field is the exegesis of individual texts in their original Koine Greek671868.

  3. Settle the questions of introduction: the authorship, date, place, purpose and composition of each book6970.

  4. Ask what written sources lie behind the Gospels, what oral forms and community settings shaped each unit, and how each evangelist edited his sources: source, form and redaction criticism577172.

  5. Ask what story world the text builds and how it persuades: narrative and rhetorical criticism7374.

  6. Set the text in its world: Second Temple Judaism, the Dead Sea Scrolls, Philo, Josephus and the Greco-Roman world, with social-scientific criticism and social history for the life of the early communities75767778.

  7. Trace the reception of the texts: how they have been read, used and represented since antiquity7980.

  8. Weigh each method's limits: no method stands alone, and the historical-critical method is held necessary but insufficient by itself815.

What to read

Its primary witnesses

  • Greek manuscripts, listed in the Kurzgefasste Liste as papyri, majuscules, minuscules and lectionaries: 5,700 entries on 29 September 2023, or 5,541 when destroyed and missing manuscripts are excluded8283.
  • The early papyri: P52, long held to be the earliest New Testament fragment, the Chester Beatty papyri P45, P46 and P47, the Bodmer papyri P66 and P72, and P7584858687.
  • The great codices: Sinaiticus, the earliest complete New Testament, and Vaticanus, both of the mid fourth century, with Alexandrinus, Bezae and Washingtonianus8889909192.
  • The early versions: Old Latin and Vulgate, Old Syriac and Peshitta, Coptic, Ge'ez, Armenian and Gothic939495969798.
  • Patristic citations, indexed in Biblia Patristica (1965 to 2000) and its successor BIBLINDEX, online since 200899.
  • The writings of the setting: the Dead Sea Scrolls, Philo and Josephus, the Apostolic Fathers, the New Testament apocrypha and the Nag Hammadi texts7576775546100.
  • Papyri such as those found by Grenfell and Hunt at Oxyrhynchus from 1897 to 1907, among them early New Testament texts101.

Standard reference works

  • Novum Testamentum Graece, 28th edition (2012), and the United Bible Societies' Greek New Testament, sixth edition (2025)10210353.
  • The Editio Critica Maior, with the Catholic Letters, Acts, Mark and Revelation published104105.
  • The SBL Greek New Testament (2010) and the Tyndale House Greek New Testament (2017)106107.
  • Bauer, Danker, Arndt and Gingrich (BDAG), third edition (2000), the standard Greek-English lexicon, and the Cambridge Greek Lexicon (2021)108109.
  • Moulton and Milligan, the vocabulary of the Greek Testament illustrated from the papyri (1914 to 1930)110.
  • Blass, Debrunner and Funk (1961), the standard reference grammar, and D. B. Wallace's Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics (1996)111112.
  • Kittel and Friedrich's Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, in English from 1964 to about 1976, and the New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology and Exegesis (2014)113114.
  • Commentary series, among them Hermeneia, the International Critical Commentary, the Anchor Yale Bible, the New International Greek Testament Commentary, Sacra Pagina and the Global Bible Commentary115116117118119120.
  • Journals, among them the Journal of Biblical Literature (1881), the Zeitschrift für die neutestamentliche Wissenschaft (1900), New Testament Studies (1954 to 1955), Neotestamentica (1966) and the Journal for the Study of the New Testament (1978)121122123124125.
  • The New Testament Virtual Manuscript Room at Münster, with images, transcriptions and the digital Editio Critica Maior126.
  • Bibliographies: New Testament Abstracts, the ATLA Religion Database and Index Theologicus127128.

Scholarship referenced in this study

The works below shaped the field and are cited in this study, from the earliest to the most recent. Hover over a book, or select it, to see its author and the sources behind it.

  • 1540Commentary on RomansJohn CalvinCommentary on Romans (1540)John Calvin (10 July 1509 to 27 May 1564)Sources129
  • 1774 to 1778FragmentsHermann Samuel ReimarusFragments (1774 to 1778)Hermann Samuel Reimarus (22 December 1694 to 1 March 1768)Sources36
  • 1776SynopsisJohann Jakob GriesbachSynopsis (1776)Johann Jakob Griesbach (4 January 1745 to 24 March 1812)Sources130
  • 1835 to 1836Das Leben JesuDavid Friedrich StraussDas Leben Jesu (1835 to 1836)David Friedrich Strauss (27 January 1808 to 8 February 1874)Sources131
  • 1845PaulusFerdinand Christian BaurPaulus (1845)Ferdinand Christian Baur (21 June 1792 to 2 December 1860)Sources132
  • 1881The New Testament in the Original GreekB. F. WestcottThe New Testament in the Original Greek (1881)B. F. Westcott (12 January 1825 to 27 July 1901), with F. J. A. HortSources39
  • 1901Das MessiasgeheimnisWilliam WredeDas Messiasgeheimnis (1901)William Wrede (10 May 1859 to 23 November 1906)Sources133
  • 1935The Parables of the KingdomC. H. DoddThe Parables of the Kingdom (1935)C. H. Dodd (7 April 1884 to 21 September 1973)Sources134
  • 1973Jesus the JewGéza VermesJesus the Jew (1973)Géza Vermes (22 June 1924 to 8 May 2013)Sources30
  • 1980The Two HorizonsAnthony C. ThiseltonThe Two Horizons (1980)Anthony C. Thiselton (13 July 1937 to 7 February 2023)Sources135–136
  • 1983In Memory of HerElisabeth Schüssler FiorenzaIn Memory of Her (1983)Elisabeth Schüssler FiorenzaSources137
  • 1985Synopsis of the Four GospelsKurt AlandSynopsis of the Four Gospels (1985)Kurt Aland (28 March 1915 to 13 April 1994)Sources138

Listed because this study draws on their published work; no association with or endorsement of Numa Verse is implied. Suggest a correction.

Key terms

The words that carry the most weight in this field, each defined from the sources of this study. Turn a card over to read its definition.

The critical interpretation of a biblical text to discover its intended meaning139.

The family of disciplines that study text, composition and history: textual, philological, literary, tradition, form, redaction and historical criticism140.

The study of the origin, composition, history and significance of the biblical books, used in roughly its modern sense from J. D. Michaelis (1750)69.

The theology of the New Testament writings read in their own historical terms, distinguished from dogmatic theology141.

The earliest recoverable form of the text from which the manuscript tradition began, the goal of the Editio Critica Maior; it is not assumed to be identical with the authors' autographs66.

Matthew, Mark and Luke, a term coined by J. J. Griesbach because they can be viewed together130.

The hypothetical sayings source used by Matthew and Luke; the siglum became established only at the end of the nineteenth century, and no manuscript of Q has been found3757.

The setting in the life of a community in which a unit of tradition took its form, the key idea of form criticism71.

Jesus as reconstructed by historical method from the sources, the object of the successive quests62.

The study of how the texts have been received and used, also called history of effects (Wirkungsgeschichte)7980.

Questions people ask

Twenty-seven: four Gospels, the Acts of the Apostles, 21 letters and the Revelation to John142. The Catholic, Orthodox and Protestant churches share the same 27-book New Testament, while the Syriac churches received the Peshitta New Testament of 22 books, without 2 Peter, 2 and 3 John, Jude and Revelation143144.

Paul's letters are the earliest, written in about 52 to 58145146. Critical textbooks place Mark around 70, Matthew and Luke around 80 to 85 and John around 90 to 95, while a minority dates all four Gospels before 705960. Revelation is commonly dated to about 95147.

It is the question of the literary relationship of Matthew, Mark and Luke57148. The two-source hypothesis, that Matthew and Luke independently used Mark and the sayings source Q, is the majority view, and the Farrer, Griesbach, Matthean posteriority and Augustinian hypotheses are each held by a minority14857. The most recent handbook still presents the problem as unresolved58.

A reading of Paul, associated with Stendahl, Sanders, Dunn and Wright, which holds that Judaism was a religion of grace, covenantal nomism, and that the works of the law are boundary markers between Jews and Gentiles4950. Defenders of Paul within Judaism argue that it still implies that Paul found Judaism lacking149.

On 29 September 2023 the INTF gave the number of entries in the Kurzgefasste Liste as 5,700, or 5,541 when destroyed and missing manuscripts are excluded83. The numbers are those assigned, not counts of surviving manuscripts, and many entries are fragments rather than complete copies82150.

Contribute to New Testament

Register to contribute

  1. 1Instruction Concerning the Historical Truth of the Gospels (Fitzmyer translation, catholic-resources.org)https://catholic-resources.org/ChurchDocs/PBC_HistTruthFitzmyer.htm (opens in a new tab)
  2. 2Dei Verbum (Holy See)https://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19651118_dei-verbum_en.html (opens in a new tab)
  3. 3Pius XII, Divino Afflante Spiritu (30 September 1943), Holy Seehttps://www.vatican.va/content/pius-xii/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_p-xii_enc_30091943_divino-afflante-spiritu.html (opens in a new tab)
  4. 4Vatican, PBC 1993 (Italian)https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/pcb_documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_19930415_interpretazione_it.html (opens in a new tab)
  5. 5Summary of Verbum Domini (Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops)https://www.cccb.ca/document/summary-of-the-post-synodal-apostolic-exhortation-verbum-domini-by-the-commission-for-doctrine-canadianconference-of-catholic-bishops/ (opens in a new tab)
  6. 6Florovsky, Holy Scripture – Church (Orthodox Theological Digital Library summary)https://old.imdlibrary.gr/index.php/en/2014-10-23-12-50-12/summariesbooks/406-florovsky-georges-holy-scripture-church (opens in a new tab)
  7. 7Scripture in Tradition (St Vladimir's Seminary Press)https://stmpress.com/products/scripture-in-tradition (opens in a new tab)
  8. 8Ortodoksia (journal.fi)https://journal.fi/ortodoksia/article/view/129938 (opens in a new tab)
  9. 9The New Testament: An Orthodox Perspective (Holy Cross Bookstore)https://holycrossbookstore.com/products/the-new-testament-an-orthodox-perspective (opens in a new tab)
  10. 10The Oxford Handbook of the Bible in Orthodox Christianity (Oxford Academic)https://academic.oup.com/edited-volume/41986 (opens in a new tab)
  11. 11C. E. Morrison, "Exegesis, New Testament", Gorgias Encyclopedic Dictionary of the Syriac Heritagehttps://gedsh.bethmardutho.org/Exegesis-New-Testament (opens in a new tab)
  12. 12Y. A. Belay, "Scripture and Context in Conversation: The Ethiopian Andəmta Interpretative Tradition", Conspectus 34.1 (2022), abstracthttps://www.galaxie.com/article/conspectus34-1-05 (opens in a new tab)
  13. 13Universität Hamburg, Ethiopian Studies, andemta project pagehttps://www.aai.uni-hamburg.de/en/ethiostudies/research/andemta.html (opens in a new tab)
  14. 14Wikipedia, "Orthodox Tewahedo biblical canon"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orthodox_Tewahedo_biblical_canon (opens in a new tab)
  15. 15R. W. Cowley, "The Biblical Canon of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church Today", Ostkirchliche Studien 23 (1974), online reprinthttps://www.islamic-awareness.org/bible/text/canon/ethiopican (opens in a new tab)
  16. 16Wikipedia, "Theodore of Mopsuestia"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theodore_of_Mopsuestia (opens in a new tab)
  17. 17Gorgias Encyclopedic Dictionary of the Syriac Heritage, "Ishoʿdad of Merv (fl. ca. 850), Church of the East"https://gedsh.bethmardutho.org/Ishodad-of-Merv (opens in a new tab)
  18. 18Inhalte des Studiums: Fächer der Theologie (Universität Göttingen)https://uni-goettingen.de/de/109109.html (opens in a new tab)
  19. 19Evangelische Theologie (Bachelor Nebenfach), LMU Münchenhttps://www.lmu.de/de/studium/studienangebot/alle-studienfaecher-und-studiengaenge/evangelische-theologie-bachelor-nebenfach-2886.html (opens in a new tab)
  20. 20Encyclopaedia Britannica, "Rudolf Bultmann"https://www.britannica.com/biography/Rudolf-Bultmann (opens in a new tab)
  21. 21Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy (text)https://www.onthewing.org/user/Chicago%20Statement%20on%20Biblical%20Inerrancy.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  22. 22About ETS (Evangelical Theological Society)https://www.etsjets.org/about (opens in a new tab)
  23. 23Institute for Biblical Research, "A Short History of IBR"https://www.ibr-bbr.org/about/history/ (opens in a new tab)
  24. 24Our history, Tyndale Househttps://tyndale.cam.ac.uk/about/our-history/ (opens in a new tab)
  25. 25J. C. Thomas, reprinted in Evangelical Review of Theology 20.3 (1996)https://gospelstudies.org.uk/biblicalstudies/pdf/evangelical-review-of-theology/ert_20-3_thomas.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  26. 26Reading Religion (AAR) book pagehttps://readingreligion.org/9780802874399/ (opens in a new tab)
  27. 27D. Johnson, review, Pneuma Review (Fall 1999)https://pneumareview.com/?p=19690 (opens in a new tab)
  28. 28Society for Pentecostal Studies home pagehttps://www.sps-usa.org/ (opens in a new tab)
  29. 29The Jewish Annotated New Testament (Oxford University Press)https://global.oup.com/academic/product/the-jewish-annotated-new-testament-9780190461850 (opens in a new tab)
  30. 30Encyclopaedia Britannica, "Geza Vermes"https://www.britannica.com/biography/Geza-Vermes (opens in a new tab)
  31. 31Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Department of Comparative Religion; Center for the Study of Christianityhttps://csc.huji.ac.il/about-center (opens in a new tab)
  32. 32Origen (Catholic Encyclopedia, New Advent)https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/11306b.htm (opens in a new tab)
  33. 33Letter 39 (Athanasius, New Advent Fathers)https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/2806039.htm (opens in a new tab)
  34. 34H. J. de Jonge, Leiden Special Collections blog (28 February 2016)https://www.leidenspecialcollectionsblog.nl/articles/erasmus-new-testament-edition-of-1516 (opens in a new tab)
  35. 35H. Strutwolf, "Bibeltext / Textkritik (NT)", WiBiLex (May 2024)https://www.die-bibel.de/stichwort/49996 (opens in a new tab)
  36. 36Encyclopaedia Britannica, "Hermann Samuel Reimarus"https://www.britannica.com/biography/Hermann-Samuel-Reimarus (opens in a new tab)
  37. 37T. Hieke, "Logienquelle", WiBiLex (December 2010)https://www.die-bibel.de/stichwort/51967 (opens in a new tab)
  38. 38S. Carlson, Chronology of the Synoptic Problemhttps://hypotyposeis.org/synoptic-problem/2004/09/chronology-of-synoptic-problem.html (opens in a new tab)
  39. 39Encyclopaedia Britannica, "Brooke Foss Westcott"https://www.britannica.com/biography/Brooke-Foss-Westcott (opens in a new tab)
  40. 40Cambridge Core, The New Testament in the Original Greekhttps://www.cambridge.org/core/books/new-testament-in-the-original-greek/25C5E21F05C80F7868CB28EF600F87A0 (opens in a new tab)
  41. 41Encyclopedia.com (Encyclopedia of Religion)https://www.encyclopedia.com/people/philosophy-and-religion/protestant-christianity-biographies/albert-schweitzer (opens in a new tab)
  42. 42Deutsche Bibelgesellschafthttps://www.die-bibel.de/stichwort/53957 (opens in a new tab)
  43. 43Encyclopaedia Britannica, "Martin Dibelius"https://www.britannica.com/biography/Martin-Dibelius (opens in a new tab)
  44. 44Wikipedia, "Karl Ludwig Schmidt"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karl_Ludwig_Schmidt (opens in a new tab)
  45. 45Studiorum Novi Testamenti Societas, "History"https://snts.online/history/ (opens in a new tab)
  46. 46J. M. Robinson, "Introduction", The Nag Hammadi Library (Gnosis Archive)http://gnosis.org/naghamm/nhlintro.html (opens in a new tab)
  47. 47Encyclopaedia Britannica, "Dead Sea Scrolls"https://www.britannica.com/topic/Dead-Sea-Scrolls (opens in a new tab)
  48. 48Recherches de Science Religieuse, "Le débat de Käsemann et de Bultmann"https://www.revue-rsr.com/article/le-debat-de-kasermann-et-de-bultmann/ (opens in a new tab)
  49. 49B. D. Ehrman, "A truly great New Testament scholar: E. P. Sanders, in memoriam", Ehrman Bloghttps://ehrmanblog.org/a-truly-great-new-testament-scholar-e-p-sanders-in-memoriam/ (opens in a new tab)
  50. 50J. M. G. Barclay, British Academy memoir (2023)https://www.thebritishacademy.ac.uk/documents/4932/Memoirs-21-09-Dunn.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  51. 51History (INTF, University of Münster)https://www.uni-muenster.de/INTF/en/institut/geschichte (opens in a new tab)
  52. 52INTF, University of Münster, "Ausgaben" (editions)https://www.uni-muenster.de/INTF/en/publikationen/ausgaben.html (opens in a new tab)
  53. 53GNT6 (die-bibel.de)https://www.die-bibel.de/gnt6 (opens in a new tab)
  54. 54The NA29 (die-bibel.de)https://www.die-bibel.de/en/the-na-29 (opens in a new tab)
  55. 55Lehrstuhl für Neutestamentliche Wissenschaften, Universität Bamberghttps://www.uni-bamberg.de/nt/ (opens in a new tab)
  56. 56New Testament Studies as a theological and cultural studies discipline (Goethe University Frankfurt)https://www.uni-frankfurt.de/63914385/New-Testament (opens in a new tab)
  57. 57Encyclopaedia Britannica, "Synoptic Problem"https://www.britannica.com/topic/synoptic-problem (opens in a new tab)
  58. 58The Oxford Handbook of the Synoptic Gospels (Reading Religion)https://readingreligion.org/9780190887452/the-oxford-handbook-of-the-synoptic-gospels (opens in a new tab)
  59. 59Why Date the Gospels After 70 CE? (Ehrman Blog)https://ehrmanblog.org/why-date-the-gospels-after-70-ce/ (opens in a new tab)
  60. 60When Were the Gospels Written? (St Paul Center)https://stpaulcenter.com/when-were-the-gospels-written/ (opens in a new tab)
  61. 61Encyclopaedia Britannica, "Pauline Letters"https://www.britannica.com/topic/Pauline-Letters (opens in a new tab)
  62. 62Shouldn't Evangelicals Participate in the Third Quest? (Themelios)https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/themelios/article/shouldnt-evangelicals-participate-in-the-third-quest-for-the-historical-jesus/ (opens in a new tab)
  63. 63Paul within Judaism (Fortress Press)https://www.fortresspress.com/store/product/9781451470031/Paul-within-Judaism (opens in a new tab)
  64. 64Larry W. Hurtado memorial (SBL)https://www.sbl-site.org/assets/pdfs/LWHurtado_memorial.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  65. 65The Early High Christology Legacy of Larry Hurtado (The Gospel Coalition)https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/early-high-christology-legacy-larry-hurtado (opens in a new tab)
  66. 66The Coherence-Based Genealogical Method (INTF, University of Münster)https://uni-muenster.de/INTF/en/forschung/cbgm/index.html (opens in a new tab)
  67. 67The task and future of New Testament Studies, HTS Teologiese Studies 79(2), 2023https://hts.org.za/index.php/hts/article/view/9319/26036 (opens in a new tab)
  68. 68Deutsche Bibelgesellschafthttps://www.die-bibel.de/stichwort/200473/ (opens in a new tab)
  69. 69L. Berkhof, Introduction to the New Testament (Reformed Perspectives)https://reformedperspectives.org/articles/lou_berkhof/lou_berkhof.INT_002.html (opens in a new tab)
  70. 70Ruhr-Universität Bochum course descriptionhttps://www.kath.ruhr-uni-bochum.de/mam/nt/s%c3%b6ding_vl_einleitung_in_das_nt_ws20_21.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  71. 71Encyclopaedia Britannica, "form criticism"https://www.britannica.com/topic/form-criticism (opens in a new tab)
  72. 72Encyclopaedia Britannica, "Redaction Criticism"https://www.britannica.com/topic/redaction-criticism (opens in a new tab)
  73. 73Fortress Press product pagehttps://www.fortresspress.com/store/product/9780800699093/Mark-as-Story (opens in a new tab)
  74. 74Rhetorical Criticism: An Introduction (Themelios)https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/themelios/article/rhetorical-criticism-an-introduction/ (opens in a new tab)
  75. 75Israel Antiquities Authority, Leon Levy Dead Sea Scrolls Digital Library, "Introduction"https://www.deadseascrolls.org.il/learn-about-the-scrolls/introduction (opens in a new tab)
  76. 76Encyclopaedia Britannica, "Philo Judaeus"https://www.britannica.com/biography/Philo-Judaeus (opens in a new tab)
  77. 77Encyclopaedia Britannica, "Flavius Josephus"https://www.britannica.com/biography/Flavius-Josephus (opens in a new tab)
  78. 78H. Moxnes, "Social Science Perspectives in Early Christian Studies in a Nordic Context", Biblical Theology Bulletin 48.2 (2018) 76 to 84https://duo.uio.no/bitstream/10852/67661/2/moxnes%2bpostprint%2bsocial%2bscience%2bperspectives.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  79. 79German for Neutestamentler, Ulrich Luz English publicationshttps://germanforneutestamentler.com/ulrich-luz-english-publications/ (opens in a new tab)
  80. 80J. Dunkly and D. Bergant, review, Theological Librarianship 2.2 (December 2009)https://serials.atla.com/theolib/article/download/2702/3426/12441 (opens in a new tab)
  81. 81The Interpretation of the Bible in the Church (PBC 1993)https://1981.catholic-resources.org/ChurchDocs/PBC_Interp-FullText.htm (opens in a new tab)
  82. 82INTF blog post (Liste editions and supplements)https://ntvmr.uni-muenster.de/intfblog/-/blogs/2070224 (opens in a new tab)
  83. 83INTF blog, How many Greek New Testament manuscripts are there really? The latest numbershttps://ntvmr.uni-muenster.de/de/intfblog/-/blogs/how-many-greek-new-testament-manuscripts-are-there-really-the-latest-numbers (opens in a new tab)
  84. 84John Rylands Library, University of Manchester, "The St John Fragment"https://www.library.manchester.ac.uk/rylands/visit/visitor-information/explore/st-john-fragment (opens in a new tab)
  85. 85BiblicalTraining, Chester Beatty Papyrihttps://www.biblicaltraining.org/library/chester-beatty-papyri (opens in a new tab)
  86. 86Bodmer Papyri, Wikipediahttps://wikipedia.com/wiki/Bodmer_Papyri (opens in a new tab)
  87. 87Vatican Apostolic Library, The Hanna Papyrus 1 (Mater Verbi)https://bav.vatican.va/en/multimedia/papiro-hanna-1.html (opens in a new tab)
  88. 88Codex Sinaiticus Project, The Codexhttps://codexsinaiticus.org/en/codex/ (opens in a new tab)
  89. 89Encyclopaedia Britannica, "Codex Vaticanus"https://www.britannica.com/topic/Codex-Vaticanus (opens in a new tab)
  90. 90BiblicalTraining, Codex Alexandrinushttps://www.biblicaltraining.org/library/codex-alexandrinus (opens in a new tab)
  91. 91Cambridge University Library, Lines of Thought: Codex Bezaehttps://exhibitions.lib.cam.ac.uk/linesofthought/?p=124 (opens in a new tab)
  92. 92National Geographic, World's Third Oldest Bible Displayed at Smithsonianhttps://www.nationalgeographic.com/culture/article/131227-ancient-bible-codex-washingtonianus-freer-logion-religion-culture (opens in a new tab)
  93. 93Herder, Vetus Latina Instituthttps://www.herder.de/vetus-latina/institut/ (opens in a new tab)
  94. 94BiblicalTraining, Old Syriac Versions of the New Testamenthttps://www.biblicaltraining.org/library/old-syriac-versions-new-testament (opens in a new tab)
  95. 95Oxford Academic, The Early Versions of the New Testamenthttps://academic.oup.com/book/26742/chapter/195611398 (opens in a new tab)
  96. 96Medievalists.net, Garima Gospelshttps://www.medievalists.net/2010/07/garima-gospels-found-to-be-oldest-surviving-christian-illustrated-manuscripts/ (opens in a new tab)
  97. 97Britannica, Mesropian Biblehttps://www.britannica.com/topic/Mesropian-Bible (opens in a new tab)
  98. 98UNESCO Memory of the World nomination, Codex Argenteushttps://media.unesco.org/sites/default/files/webform/mow001/sweden_codex.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  99. 99ANR, BIBLINDEX projecthttps://anr.fr/Project-ANR-10-BLAN-2001 (opens in a new tab)
  100. 100Encyclopaedia Britannica, "Gospel Of Thomas"https://www.britannica.com/topic/Gospel-of-Thomas (opens in a new tab)
  101. 101Encyclopaedia Britannica, "Oxyrhynchus Papyri"https://www.britannica.com/topic/Oxyrhynchus-papyri (opens in a new tab)
  102. 102Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, Novum Testamentum Graece (Nestle-Aland)https://www.die-bibel.de/novum-testamentum-graece-nestle-aland (opens in a new tab)
  103. 103Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, The NA28https://www.die-bibel.de/en/the-na-28 (opens in a new tab)
  104. 104The ECM (die-bibel.de)https://www.die-bibel.de/en/the-editio-critica-maior-ecm (opens in a new tab)
  105. 105University of Münster, press release on four new volumes of the Editio Critica Maior (idw, 2 August 2024)https://idw-online.de/en/news837829 (opens in a new tab)
  106. 106SBLGNT press releasehttps://www.sblgnt.com/about/press (opens in a new tab)
  107. 107Crossway, The Greek New Testament, Produced at Tyndale Househttps://crossway.org/bibles/the-greek-new-testament-produced-at-tyndal-hconly (opens in a new tab)
  108. 108Electronic Antiquity, review of BDAGhttps://scholar.lib.vt.edu/ejournals/ElAnt/V6N1/haines.html (opens in a new tab)
  109. 109Queens' College, Publication of the Cambridge Greek Lexiconhttps://www.queens.cam.ac.uk/life-at-queens/news-and-events/publication-of-the-cambridge-greek-lexicon-life-fellow-professor (opens in a new tab)
  110. 110Wabash Center, Vocabulary of the Greek Testamenthttps://wabashcenter.wabash.edu/resources/scholarship/vocabulary-of-the-greek-testament (opens in a new tab)
  111. 111CiNii, A Greek grammar of the New Testamenthttps://ci.nii.ac.jp/ncid/BA02249637 (opens in a new tab)
  112. 112Library catalogue record, D. B. Wallace, Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics (1996)https://csl.tind.io/record/120166 (opens in a new tab)
  113. 113Emmaus Library catalogue recordhttps://library.ccs.edu.au/bib/14433 (opens in a new tab)
  114. 114Accordance, NIDNTTEhttps://www.accordancebible.com/product/new-international-dictionary-of-new-testament-theology-and-exegesis/ (opens in a new tab)
  115. 115Accordance, Hermeneia Commentary Sethttps://www.accordancebible.com/Hermeneia-Commentary-Set-51/ (opens in a new tab)
  116. 116Wikipedia, International Critical Commentaryhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Critical_Commentary (opens in a new tab)
  117. 117Yale University Press, Anchor Yale Biblehttps://yalebooks.yale.edu/?p=2695 (opens in a new tab)
  118. 118Wikipedia, NIGTChttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_International_Greek_Testament_Commentary (opens in a new tab)
  119. 119Liturgical Press, Sacra Paginahttps://litpress.org/Products/5982/Sacra-Pagina (opens in a new tab)
  120. 120Vanderbilt, Global Bible Commentaryhttps://www.vanderbilt.edu/AnS/religious_studies/GBC/index.htm (opens in a new tab)
  121. 121Society of Biblical Literature, Society Report 2019https://www.sbl-site.org/assets/pdfs/SocietyReport2019.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  122. 122De Gruyter Brill, Zeitschrift für die neutestamentliche Wissenschafthttps://www.degruyterbrill.com/journal/key/zntw/html (opens in a new tab)
  123. 123Cambridge Core, New Testament Studies, all issueshttps://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/new-testament-studies/all-issues (opens in a new tab)
  124. 124New Testament Society of Southern Africahttps://www.ntssa.org.za/ (opens in a new tab)
  125. 125SAGE Journals, Journal for the Study of the New Testament, all issueshttps://journals.sagepub.com/loi/jnt (opens in a new tab)
  126. 126NTVMR home pagehttps://ntvmr.uni-muenster.de/ (opens in a new tab)
  127. 127Bible research guide, Yale University Libraryhttps://guides.library.yale.edu/religion_research/bible (opens in a new tab)
  128. 128New Testament Studies: Bibliographies, Kenrick-Glennon Seminary Libraryhttps://kenrick.libguides.com/new-testament-studies/bibliographies (opens in a new tab)
  129. 129Encyclopaedia Britannica, "John Calvin"https://www.britannica.com/biography/John-Calvin (opens in a new tab)
  130. 130Encyclopaedia Britannica, "Johann Jakob Griesbach"https://www.britannica.com/biography/Johann-Jakob-Griesbach (opens in a new tab)
  131. 131Encyclopaedia Britannica, "David Friedrich Strauss"https://www.britannica.com/biography/David-Friedrich-Strauss (opens in a new tab)
  132. 132Encyclopaedia Britannica, "Ferdinand Christian Baur"https://www.britannica.com/biography/Ferdinand-Christian-Baur (opens in a new tab)
  133. 133Encyclopaedia Britannica, "William Wrede"https://www.britannica.com/biography/William-Wrede (opens in a new tab)
  134. 134Encyclopaedia Britannica, "C. H. Dodd"https://www.britannica.com/biography/C-H-Dodd (opens in a new tab)
  135. 135Wikipedia, "Anthony Thiselton"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthony_Thiselton (opens in a new tab)
  136. 136University of Nottingham, on Anthony C. Thiseltonhttps://nottingham.ac.uk/humanities/departments/theology-and-religious-studies/news-and-events/news/2023/anthony-thiselton-obituary.aspx (opens in a new tab)
  137. 137Harvard Divinity School, on Elisabeth Schüssler Fiorenzahttps://hds.harvard.edu/people/elisabeth-sch%C3%BCssler-fiorenza (opens in a new tab)
  138. 138University of Münster, on Kurt Alandhttps://www.uni-muenster.de/INTF/en/institut/geschichte/index.html (opens in a new tab)
  139. 139Encyclopaedia Britannica, "Exegesis"https://www.britannica.com/topic/exegesis (opens in a new tab)
  140. 140Encyclopaedia Britannica, "Biblical criticism"https://www.britannica.com/topic/biblical-criticism (opens in a new tab)
  141. 141Wikipedia, "New Testament theology"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Testament_theology (opens in a new tab)
  142. 142Encyclopaedia Britannica, "New Testament Canon Texts And Versions"https://www.britannica.com/topic/biblical-literature/New-Testament-canon-texts-and-versions (opens in a new tab)
  143. 143Wikipedia, "Biblical canon"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biblical_canon (opens in a new tab)
  144. 144Encyclopaedia Britannica, "Peshitta"https://www.britannica.com/topic/Peshitta (opens in a new tab)
  145. 145Encyclopaedia Britannica, "New Testament"https://www.britannica.com/topic/New-Testament (opens in a new tab)
  146. 146Catholic Encyclopedia, The New Testamenthttps://www.newadvent.org/cathen/14530a.htm (opens in a new tab)
  147. 147Wikipedia, "Book of Revelation"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Book_of_Revelation (opens in a new tab)
  148. 148Overview of Proposed Solutions (Synoptic Problem Website, S. Carlson)https://www.hypotyposeis.org/synoptic-problem/2004/09/overview-of-proposed-solutions.html (opens in a new tab)
  149. 149T. D. Stegman, review, Studies in Christian-Jewish Relations 10 (2015)https://ejournals.bc.edu/index.php/scjr/article/download/9078/8185/15482 (opens in a new tab)
  150. 150Greg Paulson, "Liste Supplement", INTF/NTVMR blog, 22 March 2018https://ntvmr.uni-muenster.de/web/gregpaulson/home/-/blogs/1193871 (opens in a new tab)

Page record

Reviewed and approved by Duane Herholdt, BA (Theology), Chief Executive Officer, Numa Verse

Study version: v1.1, 14 October 2026 (theology map v1.27)

Last reviewed: 7 November 2026

How these pages are made

  • 7 November 2026: First draft from the approved assessment v1.1.