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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. How does Mark say the spirit descended from the sky?

2. How does Matthew say Joseph responded to hearing that his wife was pregnant?

3. What aristocratic Jewish historian does the author draw on to examine the Greco-Roman period?

4. Where did Jesus teach people where the Kingdom of Heaven could be found?

5. What kind of seed did Jesus once compare the Kingdom of God to?

Short Essay Questions

1. What do the quotes at the beginning of the section comment on?

2. In One Like a Son of Man what does the author say the original biblical text suggested was a key component of Jesus' teachings?

3. What parallels does the author draw between Augustus and Jesus' life?

4. What does the author say compounds the core problem of the different interpretations of Jesus' life?

5. Why does the author state there is a need to search for the historical Jesus?

6. Summarize the two quotes that open this chapter.

7. What does the author claim is the primary focus of Josephus' writings?

8. Why did the Romans want to suppress both John the Baptist and Jesus?

9. How does the author think the Old Testament was important in the writing of the New Testament?

10. What does the author say the book taught him?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How did Josephus represent John the Baptist? In what way and why was Josephus's representation of John the Baptist restricted by the government at the time?

Essay Topic 2

In what way were Jesus' teachings a product of oppression? In what way could Jesus be seen as a rebel?

Essay Topic 3

How does the author think the gospels used the Old Testament and its prophecies for the New Testament? What are the arguments for and against the gospels mining the Old Testament for information?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 756 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample