Research & Writing
My primary research interests are in Pauline Theology and Early Judaism, though I mostly teach Old Testament courses (Old Testament Literature, The Book of Ezekiel) here at Cedarille. I also have a strong desire to get out of Paul and into gospels research and have recently agreed to write a commentary on Luke's gospel for a new commentary series published by Brill (see below). I especially enjoy narrative literature of all types (OT and NT) and would love to do more work in the area of literary approaches to the gospels.
My Ph.D. was in the area of Paul and the Law, more specifically, “The Interpretation of Leviticus 18:5 in Early Judaism and in Paul.” My dissertation was recently published by Mohr-Siebeck in April 2008. Here’s part of the preface, which may give you a better picture of what it’s all about:
This book represents a slight revision of my Ph.D. dissertation, written under the supervision of Dr. Simon J. Gathercole (now at Cambridge University) and submitted to Aberdeen University in March, 2007. Choosing a dissertation topic is one of the most important decisions a young scholar will make. One might be a bit confused, perhaps perturbed, therefore, that I chose to spend three years researching half a verse in the Hebrew Bible, Lev 18:5b! Indeed, at times I have found it difficult to answer the question often asked: “So what are you working on in your Ph.D.?” The facial expressions I received upon hearing my topic have ranged from the standard blank stare to the token “ah yes;” a courtesy gesture of course. I have found that the quickest way to vindicate the relevance of my topic is with the analogy that Lev 18:5 was the “John 3:16 of Early Judaism.” Paul seems to believe, moreover, that this passage was diametrically opposed to his own “John 3:16,” namely, Hab 2:4 (cf. Gal 3:11–12). Sometimes this explanation would quicken the blank stare or elicit another, perhaps more genuine, “ahhh yes,” bringing a certain amount of reassurance that I did not travel half way around the world to examine a very small tree in a very large forest. In any case, Moses has not let me down! This project has been a joyful journey into the world of Second Temple Judaism, Paul’s view of the law, and the relationship between early Jewish and Pauline soteriology—areas of biblical research that all carry a great amount of relevancy.
Shortly after (and actually during) my PhD, I worked on a book edited by myself and my good buddy Mike Bird, on the highly debated phrase, Pistis Christou in Paul (Rom 3:22, 26; Gal 2:16, 20; 3:20; Phil 3:9; cf. Eph 3:12) and elsewhere in the NT (see similar phrases in James and Revelation). Are we justified by our faith in Christ, or by Christ's own faith(fulness)? Or, are these the only two options (see my essay in the book)? The phrase could go either way. This book is a collection of essay, written by leading N.T. scholars, such as Francis Watson, Barry Matlock, Doug Campbell, Paul Foster, and others, and is due to come out sometime in Spring 09.
What am I working on?
I am currently working on a chapter for the forthcoming survey of the OT published by Kregel titled: What the Old Testament Authors Really Cared About. I am writing the chapter on Ezekiel.
NEW! I just signed a contract with IVP Academic to write a book provisionally titled: Paul and Judaism Revisited. I don't love the title, so it'll probably change a bit as it progresses. In any case, this book will examine, or re-examine, the similarities and disimilarities between Paul's understanding of salvation and Judaism's. I'll look at issues such as anthropology, the spirit, concept of grace, justification, and so on, in order to compare the shape of Paul's soteriology with Judaism's, or more specifically, with Qumran.
I am also working on a essay on the soteriology in Pseudo-Philo, which will be published in a book of compiled essays that discussing the soteriology of Second Temple Judaism, edited by my friend Dan Gurtner.
Come next Fall, I will be working on an edited book (wtih Mike Bird, yet again) that deals with the interpretation of Paul by second century writers. The book should be published (by T & T Clark) sometime in 2011.
The most recent writing project that I have on the table is an exegetical commentary on the Gospel of Luke, which will be published by Brill in the series, The Brill Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament. I am very excited about this new study! But don't hold your breath: this is an 8 year project (which means the my oldest daughter, who is now 5, will be a teenager by the time it comes out....ugh!)
Publications
Books
Law and Life: The Use of Leviticus 18:5 in Early Judaism and in Paul (WUNT II.241; Tübingen: Mohr-Siebeck, 2008)
Preston M. Sprinkle and Michael F. Bird (eds.), The Faith of Jesus Christ: Exegetical,
Biblical, and Theological Studies (Carlisle: Paternoster Press; Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson, forthcoming 2009)
Preston M. Sprinkle and Michael F. Bird (eds.), The Interpretation of the Apostle Paul in the Second Century (LNTS; London: T & T Clark, forthcoming 2011)
Paul and Judaism Revisited (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, forthcoming 2012)
The Gospel of Luke (The Brill New Testament Exegetical Commentary; Leiden: Brill, forthcoming)
Articles
“The Use of Genesis 42:18 (Not Leviticus 18:5) in Luke 10:28: Joseph and the Good
Samaritan,” Bulletin of Biblical Research 17.1 (2007), 193-205
Preston M. Sprinkle and Michael F. Bird, "Jewish Interpretation of the Apostle Paul in the
Last 30 years," Currents in Biblical Research 6 (forthcoming 2008)
"Why Can't 'The One Does These Things' Live by Them'? The Use of Leviticus 18:5 in Galatians 3:12," in Craig A. Evans and H.D. Zacharias, Early Christian Literature and Intertextuality (LSTS; London: T & T Clark, forthcoming 2008)
“Pistis Christou as an Eschatological Event,” in Preston M. Sprinkle and Michael F. Bird
(eds.), The Faith of Jesus Christ: Exegetical, Biblical, and Theological Studies
(Carlisle: Paternoster Press; Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson, forthcoming 2009)
“Covenantal Nomism Revisited: The Soteriological Framework of Pseudo-Philo,” in
Stanley E. Porter and Andrew W. Pitts (eds.), Christian Origins and Hellenistic
Judaism: Literary and Social Contexts for the New Testament (The New
Testament in its Hellenistic Context; Leiden, Brill: forthcoming 2009)
Articles in Progress
“Ezekiel” in Jason S. DeRouchie, What the Old Testament Authors Really Cared About: A Survey of Their Writings (Grand Rapids: Kregel, forthcoming 2010)
“The Apostle Paul in Second Century Interpretation,” in Preston M. Sprinkle and Michael F. Bird (eds.), The Interpretation of the Apostle Paul in the Second Century (LNTS; London: T & T Clark, forthcoming 2011)
“The Soteriology of Pseudo-Philo,” in Soteriological Structures in Second Temple Judaism (ed. Dan Gurtner; under review with T & T Clark)
Book Reviews
See my CV