15
votes
Accepted
What evidence is used to support the claim that Isaiah was written before the reign of King Cyrus?
Prima Facie evidence
The primary evidence is that the text claims to have been written by Isaiah the son of Amoz, and that his career spanned portions of the reigns of Kings Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and ...
- 13.6k
11
votes
Accepted
Were 1 John and John’s gospel written by the same person?
While before the 20th century there was common agreement on common authorship between the Gospel and Epistles of John, there is, as you mention, no such agreement today. At the same time, we are quick ...
- 35.4k
10
votes
Accepted
Who wrote James?
James 1:1
In James 1:1 we read:
James, a bondservant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the
twelve tribes which are scattered abroad: Greetings. (Jam 1:1 NKJ)
This introductory greeting ...
- 3,617
10
votes
Accepted
Who wrote Lamentations?
The traditional view
As OP notes, Jeremiah was traditionally regarded as the author of the collection of five poems we know as "Lamentations". This claim is already found in the superscription to the ...
- 24.5k
10
votes
What evidence suggests that Paul was not the author of Titus?
One of the critical scholars who believe the attribution to Paul is clearly fictional is Burton L. Mack, who says (Who Wrote the New Testament, p206) the language, style and thought of Titus is ...
- 12.1k
10
votes
Is David's name at the beginning of the Psalms intended as an attribution of authorship?
While reading links to add to this question, I ran across Gesenius’ explanation (§129 c.), which seems to be too much of an answer to incorporate into the question. I therefore offer it as an answer, ...
- 25.7k
9
votes
Why is the fact that the Muratorian Fragment included Luke in its canon considered an external evidence for Luke's authorship?
The Muratorian fragment isn't simply a list of books included in the canon, but also a description of them. It's description of the Gospel of Luke makes it very clear that they believed it was written ...
- 2,869
9
votes
Were 1 John and John’s gospel written by the same person?
Bibliographic Postscript
This is offered as a supplement to Soldarnal's fine answer.
Probably the most thorough (one is tempted to say "exhaustive") account of the internal evidence bearing on the ...
- 24.5k
9
votes
Accepted
Is there a break between Isaiah 39 and 40 in the Dead Sea Scrolls?
In a 2013 interview with Dr Peter Flint, who is an editor on the Isaiah scroll, he had the following to say about the issue:
Many scholastic studies tell us that the book of Isaiah was divided into ...
- 435
8
votes
Accepted
The religious identity of those who translated Psalms 24:1 into the LXX
Although my initial reaction to this question was (not unlike the response in another answer here) that obviously this day-of-the-week superscription (DWS) reflects the Jewish liturgical background of ...
- 25.7k
7
votes
Arguments for early/late date of authorship of Daniel
The most important arguement for a late date is that if Daniel were written in the 6th Century BC, it would mean that predictive prophecy had occurred, an astounding thing. Other less significant ...
7
votes
Accepted
Does the Gospel of Marcion attest to Luke's authorship of the Gospel of Luke?
This was not, perhaps, Leon Morris's finest moment (quote is on p. 17, originally published 1974), although he certainly wasn't alone in assuming this datum. Neither Howard Marshall, nor John Nolland ...
- 24.5k
6
votes
Accepted
What external evidence do we have for who wrote the Gospel of John?
Christian tradition holds that John did live to be 80 or 90.
We know from Polycarp, that John was still active in Ephesus, and baptised him directly. Following Schaff:
It is safe, then, to say ...
- 2,249
6
votes
How could Moses have written the first five books of the Bible?
The New Bible Dictionary states:
For centuries both Judaism and Christianity accepted without question
the biblical tradition that Moses wrote the Pentateuch. Ben-Sira
(Ecclus. 24:23), Philo (...
- 2,140
6
votes
Accepted
What is the evidence/authority for claiming that Matthew wrote Matthew?
There are two common answers to this question. I'll summarize both and offer a third.
1. Manuscript evidence
The earliest manuscript bearing the title "according to Matthew" is very likely ...
- 13.6k
5
votes
Should "A Psalm of David" be written as "A Psalm to David"?
In Hebrew, ל as a prefix can mean "to" in the sense of "I am walking to the park." But it can also be used to make a noun the indirect object (i.e. beneficiary) of a sentence, in the sense of "I gave ...
- 1,437
5
votes
What evidence is used to support the claim that Isaiah was written before the reign of King Cyrus?
From biblicalarchaeology.org
Just south of the Temple Mount, in the Ophel excavations, archaeologist Eilat Mazar and her team have discovered a small seal impression that reads “[belonging] to Isaiah ...
- 151
4
votes
Accepted
Identity of the "we" in 1 John 1:1?
[OP] Who is the "we" in 1 John 1:1?
A decent case can be made that the "we" of 1 John 1 is "editorial"; that is, it is a rhetorical device to refer to the author's self. This usage, related to the "...
- 24.5k
4
votes
Did Moses write Psalm 90?
Psalm 90 is unique in that it is the only psalm that has a superscription that identifies it as having been written by Moses.
Mark S. Smith says in 'Taking Inspiration', published in Psalms and ...
- 12.1k
4
votes
The religious identity of those who translated Psalms 24:1 into the LXX
The question: What does the inclusion of τῆς μιᾶς σαββάτων in the LXX of Psa. 24:1 demonstrate about the religious identity of the translator(s) of Psa. 24:1 into the LXX?
Forgive me if I'm ...
- 1,579
4
votes
Accepted
Is Romans 3:24-26 original to Paul?
Apparently the Theory is not from Analysis of Pre-Extant Texts
If C. Marvin Pate is correct in his Romans commentary statements (no page numbers shown in that Google Book link, but it is under the ...
- 19.6k
4
votes
How many Isaiahs?
In short, No, there is no “significant scholarly view (independent of arguments from the NT) that the book was written by a single individual.”
My source for such an assertive reply is Dr. Benjamin ...
- 2,473
4
votes
Does John 21:24-25 indicate John didn't write this Gospel?
The earliest surviving effort to answer this question is (probably) the explanation found in the 2nd century Muratorian Canon:
"The fourth of the Gospels is that of John, [one] of the disciples. ...
- 13.6k
4
votes
Accepted
What is Isaiah 24-27, and when was it written?
While Is.24-27 is still often called the ‘Isaiah apocalypse’ because of its several eschatological motifs, Joseph Blenkinsopp states plainly that much of these chapters has little in common with the ...
- 2,473
4
votes
Dating the New Testament
One of the most important indicators of the date of a manuscript is the presence of any references to chronologically known events. In the case of the New Testament, a major event is the destruction ...
- 833
4
votes
Accepted
Authorship of 2 Peter - evidence against Peter
We begin by noting the obvious that the document called "2 Peter" is either a pseudepigraphon (a forgery) or it is not.
The argument against the authenticity of 2 Peter essentially rests on ...
- 69.8k
4
votes
If Matthew was an eyewitness why would he rely on Mark?
I'll offer an answer 2 ways--although I do not hold the view that Matthew copied Mark, it is a very common viewpoint.
First I'll evaluate the question as stated. Second, I'll offer an alternate ...
- 13.6k
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