Study New Testament Exegesis For Free
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This page is a step by step guide to resources in New Testament Exegesis.
Resources.
The name of the book links to the site from which you can download it (usually www.archive.org but not always) so you should click on it. More significant resources have more links: read on-line (read directly the book), download as DJVU (which will link directly to the DJVU file) and download as PDF (which will link directly to the PDF file). We recommend the use of DJVU because the format is very light.
Method followed
We will follow the exegetical steps described in the book:
Fee, Gordon D. New Testament Exegesis: A Handbook for Students and Pastors. 2002.
However we shall not follow absolutely the bibliography of Doctor Fee but we will add additional resources which make sense in the exegetical steps. Also the List follows a chronological not an alphabetical order of the books.
Step 1. The Historical Context in General
One must read general introductions to the New Testament here. For a list go to our New testament Survey & Introduction page where you will find more than 3 general introductions (surveys) and more than 5 special (book by book with dating, authorship and etc.).
Step 2. Limits of The Passage
The purpose of this step is you to identify the pericope. Find out what the logical limits of your passage are. This book will help you if you can find it (not available on-line):
Kelcy, Raymond C. Identifying the Pericope and Its Contexts.
Step 3. Paragraph Overview and Initial Translation
Use a Greek New Testament to make an initial translation of the text for yourself.
Download the New Testament in Greek or Use it On-line
Go to Novum Testamentum Graece page. We have compiled a large list of Greek New Testament texts available for download and put links to websites where you can find the Greek text on-line.
The texts for download are rather old so if you would like to use a newer one you should use an on-line text. The newest edition of Nestle-Aland's text is the 27-th but it is still not available on-line. The 26-th edition is free to use on-line on the sites provided here.
For Unfamiliar with New Testament Greek
Go to The English Bible (if you are English speaking) or Theological Research Sites for Bible translations in other languages. Get as many translations as you can and compare them to see the differences and points of conflict.
Step 4. Sentence Flow and Sentence Diagram
Nunn, H. P. V. A Short Syntax of New Testament Greek. 1912. Nunn’s classic volume provides an accessible, systematic guide to Koine Greek syntax for students without a classical language background. Avoiding complex philological debates, the text focuses on practical mechanics by organizing case usage, parts of speech, and clause structures around direct biblical examples. While highly user-friendly, its brevity lacks the exhaustive depth of larger grammars like Blass-Debrunner, and its 1912 publication predates modern verbal aspect theory. Ultimately, it remains an effective, reliable baseline reference for intermediate students seeking a functional understanding of New Testament Greek sentence construction.
( Read on-line, Download as DJVU, PDF )
Step 5. Establish the Text. Textual Criticism
Aland, Kurt, and Barbara Aland. The Text of the New Testament: An Introduction to the Critical Editions and the Theory and Practice of Modern Textual Criticism. (Read on-line) Written by two of the most influential figures in modern textual criticism, this definitive textbook provides a comprehensive introduction to the history, methodology, and source materials of the discipline. The authors systematically categorize and evaluate New Testament manuscripts—including papyri, uncials, minuscules, and early versions—while offering a detailed guide on how to navigate the complex critical apparatuses of modern editions like the Nestle-Aland and UBS texts. Though the book strongly favors the Alands' own "local-genealogical" method and their strict manuscript classification system, it remains an indispensable, highly detailed baseline for students and scholars learning to reconstruct the initial text of the New Testament.
Epp, Eldon J., and Gordon D. Fee. Studies in the Theory and Method of New Testament Textual Criticism. 1993. (Read on-line) This invaluable collection brings together essential essays by two premier textual critics to address the core methodological challenges of the discipline. Epp and Fee critically evaluate established practices, offering sharp insights into the history of textual criticism, the criteria for establishing text-types, and the analysis of scribal habits. Rather than presenting a basic manual, the authors engage in rigorous, high-level debate regarding how variants are weighed, making it a crucial methodological framework for advanced students and scholars looking to understand the evolution and modern application of textual theory.
Step 6. Grammatical Analysis
Moulton, James Hope, and Nigel Turner. A Grammar of New Testament Greek. 1906. This monumental multi-volume grammar represents a watershed moment in biblical scholarship, famously integrating the discovery of secular Egyptian papyri to prove that New Testament Greek was the everyday vernacular (Koine) of its era rather than an isolated holy dialect. Begun by Moulton and later completed by Wilbert Francis Howard and Nigel Turner, the work provides a philologically rigorous, exhaustive analysis of syntax, accidence, and style. While its decades-long publication history creates some internal shifts—particularly Turner’s later volumes leaning more toward Semitic influence—the grammar remains an indispensable, definitive reference for advanced linguistic and historical analysis of the New Testament text.
Robertson, A. T. A Grammar of the Greek New Testament in the Light of Historical Research. 1914. Affectionately known as "Big Robertson," this massive, 1,400-page masterpiece stands as the most exhaustive single-volume grammar of New Testament Greek ever produced. Robertson masterfully utilizes comparative philology and historical linguistics to explain why grammatical forms evolved, rather than just cataloging their functions. The text offers unparalleled, deeply detailed analysis of the Greek case system, prepositions, and verbal actions. Although its sheer scale can be overwhelming for beginners and its 1914 publication predates modern verbal aspect theory, it remains an unmatched apex of grammatical analysis and an essential reference tool for advanced exegesis.
Step 7. Lexical Tools
Lexicons / Dictionaries
The Analytical Greek Lexicon. Bagster's ed., 1870. This classic, specialized reference work is a parsing guide designed to help students analyze every individual word form found in the Greek New Testament. Arranged alphabetically, it lists every inflected variant—including difficult verb conjugations and noun declensions—and provides its precise grammatical analysis alongside its root dictionary form and a brief English gloss. While it remains a highly useful baseline for beginners navigating complex morphology, it lacks the modern linguistic definitions, semantic ranges, and papyrological insights found in contemporary dictionaries like BDAG.
( Read on-line, Download as: DJVU, PDF )
Cremer, Herman. Biblico-Theological Lexicon of New Testament Greek, with Supplement. 1895. Cremer’s pioneering lexicon focuses specifically on the theological development of Greek words, tracing how classical terminology was adapted and transformed by the Septuagint and New Testament writers to express unique Christian concepts. Rather than offering simple definitions, the text provides deep, thematic essays on the conceptual history of major theological terms. While it remains a valuable resource for ideological study, modern researchers must use it with caution; its 1895 publication predates the papyrological revolution, meaning it occasionally overemphasizes a distinct "Holy Ghost language" and falls into what modern linguists call the "root fallacy."
Moulton, James Hope, and George Milligan. The Vocabulary of the Greek Testament Illustrated from the Papyri and Other Non-literary Sources. 1914. This seminal, groundbreaking reference work revolutionized biblical linguistics by proving that New Testament Greek was not a unique sacred dialect, but the common vernacular (Koine) of the ancient Mediterranean. Moulton and Milligan meticulously compare biblical vocabulary with thousands of newly discovered secular papyri, ostraca (pottery fragments), and inscriptions, illuminating how everyday people used these words in receipts, personal letters, and legal contracts. Although later eclipsed by the modern BDAG lexicon, "Moulton-Milligan" remains an indispensable historical tool that provides unparalleled, vivid cultural and linguistic context for the vocabulary of the early Church.
Concordances
Moulton, William. A Concordance to the Greek Testament: According to the Texts of Westcott and Hort, Tischendorf, and the English Revisers. 1906. This foundational reference work provides a comprehensive, alphabetical index of every Greek word in the New Testament, charting its exact occurrences across the primary critical texts of the late 19th century. Far superior to English-based concordances, it displays the surrounding context of each citation in the original Greek, allowing researchers to analyze semantic usage, syntax patterns, and parallel passages with precision. It also distinguishes vocabulary that is unique to specific writers or absent from the Septuagint. While modern digital databases and revised printed editions (which incorporate newer Nestle-Aland texts) have largely overtaken it in daily practice, this classic volume remains a monumental achievement in biblical tools and a highly reliable baseline for traditional word studies.
( Read on-line, Downoad as: DJVU, PDF )
Bauer, Walter, F. W. Gingrich, and F. W. Danker. A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature. Widely recognized by the acronym BDAG, this monumental work stands as the undisputed gold standard for New Testament lexicography. It provides an unparalleled, exhaustive analysis of the semantic range of early Christian vocabulary by evaluating words alongside a vast spectrum of classical Greek literature, the Septuagint, newly discovered papyri, and contemporary inscriptions. This landmark third edition, heavily revised by Danker, famously replaced brief, traditional translation glosses with descriptive, extended contextual definitions to combat semantic bias. Packed with extensive structural outlines for complex words and exhaustive bibliographic references, BDAG is the indispensable, primary linguistic reference tool for advanced exegesis, translation, and historical-critical analysis of the New Testament text.
Step 8. Historical-Cultural Background
Charlesworth, J. H., ed. The New Testament Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha: A Guide to Publications with Excursus on Apocalypses. ATLA Bibliographical Series 17. Metuchen, 1987. This highly specialized bibliographic guide provides a comprehensive framework for locating and evaluating academic publications on early Christian apocryphal and pseudepigraphal literature. Charlesworth and Mueller systematically organize a vast corpus of secondary literature, tracking modern monographs, critical reviews, and articles that analyze non-canonical gospels, epistles, and acts. The volume is notably enhanced by its analytical excursuses, which offer deep critical reflections on the genre and definition of "apocalypse" within early Jewish and Christian contexts. While its 1987 publication date means it lacks coverage of the digital age's explosive growth in extra-canonical scholarship, it remains a vital historical baseline and an essential map of 20th-century scholarship for researchers studying the borders of the New Testament cano
Step 9. The Form of The Passage
The Gospels
The classical but very critical resource on form criticism:
Bultmann, Rudolf. The History of the Synoptic Tradition. Oxford: Basil Blackwell, 1963. This foundational masterpiece stands as the definitive text of modern New Testament "form criticism" (Formgeschichte), a method that analyzes the literary shapes of gospel units to reconstruct their oral history. Bultmann systematically deconstructs the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke) into smaller, isolated fragments—such as apophthegms (sayings framed by a brief story), miracle narratives, and parables—and traces how these units evolved within the preaching and liturgical life (Sitz im Leben) of the earliest Christian communities. While conservative scholars frequently challenge his highly skeptical conclusions regarding the historical reliability of the gospels, Bultmann’s brilliant structural taxonomy and rigorous methodology remain absolutely mandatory reading for understanding modern historical-critical gospel analysis.
More balanced resource:
Taylor, Vincent. The Formation of the Gospel Tradition. 2nd ed. London: Macmillan, 1935. This classic study provides a crucial British response to the early 20th-century rise of German form criticism, offering a balanced, historically cautious application of the method. Taylor accepts the premise that the gospels were compiled from pre-existing oral fragments—such as pronouncement stories, miracle narratives, and passion accounts—but forcefully challenges the radical historical skepticism of scholars like Rudolf Bultmann. He argues that the short timeframe between the death of Jesus and the writing of the gospels, combined with the lingering presence of eyewitnesses, acted as a natural check against the wholesale invention of community myths. Ultimately, Taylor's work remains a highly valuable methodological bridge, demonstrating how form-critical tools can be used to appreciate the literary shapes of the gospel tradition while still maintaining a robust defense of its underlying historical reliability.
( Read on-line, Download as: DJVU, PDF )
The Epistles
Deissmann, Adolf. Light from the Ancient East: The New Testament Illustrated by Recently Discovered Texts of the Graeco-Roman World. 1910. This monumental, epoch-making work fundamentally altered the field of biblical linguistics by proving that the Greek of the New Testament was not a unique, isolated sacred tongue, but the Koine—the everyday vernacular of the ordinary Graeco-Roman world. Deissmann meticulously analyzes thousands of newly unearthed papyri, pottery fragments (ostraca), and inscriptions, demonstrating how the letters, receipts, and legal petitions of common people illuminate the vocabulary and social context of the early Church. While later lexicons have absorbed and refined his data, this classic volume remains an indispensable, vividly written historical baseline for understanding the linguistic and cultural matrix of the New Testament.
( Read on-line, Download as: DJVU, PDF )
The Book of Revelation
Aune, David E. The New Testament in Its Literary Environment. Library of Early Christianity 8. Philadelphia: Westminster, 1987. Aune provides a brilliant, comprehensive introduction to New Testament literature by situating its various genres directly alongside contemporary Jewish and Greco-Roman literary forms. Rather than analyzing the text in a vacuum, he systematically compares the Gospels to ancient biography, the Epistles to classical rhetoric, and the Book of Revelation to broader ancient apocalyptic literature, magic oracles, and prophetic declarations. Although it is a broad survey rather than a granular commentary, Aune’s rigorous socio-literary approach makes this an essential, highly accessible text for understanding the specific literary conventions and expectations of the first-century Mediterranean world.
Bauckham, Richard. The Theology of the Book of Revelation. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993. Bauckham’s concise yet profoundly influential volume offers a masterclass in the thematic and theological architecture of John's Apocalypse. Rejecting popular literalist or purely historical-critical reductions, Bauckham interprets Revelation as a sophisticated critique of Roman imperial ideology and a radical call for faithful Christian witness. He expertly unpacks the book’s complex visual imagery—such as the contrast between the Lamb and the Beast—to articulate its profound theology of God, Christology, and eschatology. It remains an unmatched, indispensable primer for students and scholars seeking a coherent, deeply theological reading of Revelation's symbolic world.
Step 10. The Special Historical Context
The Gospels
This step has to do with Pericope analysis.
Huck, Albert. Synopsis of the First Three Gospels. Cincinnati: Jennings and Graham, 1907. Huck’s foundational synopsis serves as a critical layout tool designed to assist researchers in evaluating the "Synoptic Problem"—the literary relationship and shared source material between Matthew, Mark, and Luke. By placing parallel pericopes side by side in an equitable, meticulously aligned columnar format, the volume allows for instant, granular comparison of shared narratives, unique textual omissions, and minor agreements. This specific 1907 edition adapts Huck’s widely respected German work for English readers, providing an accessible yet scientifically rigorous presentation of the texts. While it lacks the contemporary textual variant databases of modern synopses, it remains a historically vital and highly effective baseline reference for source, redaction, and historical-critical gospel analysis.
( Read on-line, Download as: DJVU, PDF )
Newer edition: 13-th edition, rev. by Heinrich Greeven Tubingen, J.C.B. Mohr [Paul Siebeck] (1981)
The Book of Acts
This step here has to do with the historical study of Acts.
Marshall, I. Howard. Luke: Historian and Theologian. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1971. In this seminal work, Marshall challenges the mid-20th-century critical consensus that treated Luke as a creative theologian who freely sacrificed historical accuracy for ideological purposes. Marshall meticulously argues that Luke’s dual roles—as an intentional historian recording the origins of Christianity and a profound theologian shaping his material—are deeply complementary rather than contradictory. By examining key Lucan themes like salvation history, the Holy Spirit, and christology, Marshall demonstrates that Luke's theological assertions are explicitly anchored in what he believed to be genuine historical events. The volume remains a cornerstone defense of Lucan reliability and a classic methodological bridge in Luke-Acts scholarship.
( Review & Buy )
Hengel, Martin. Acts and the History of Earliest Christianity. Philadelphia: Fortress, 1980. Hengel provides a formidable, historically rigorous defense of the Book of Acts against radical skepticism by evaluating it through the lens of ancient Greco-Roman historiography. He contextualizes Luke’s writing within the literary standards and methods of first-century historians, arguing that despite certain theological frameworks, the author of Acts displays a remarkably reliable grasp of contemporary political, geographical, and social realities. While Hengel does not argue for absolute inerrancy, he successfully demonstrates that Acts is a vital, historically substantive source for reconstructing the explosive growth and theological evolution of the primitive Church.
The Epistles
This step has to do with the reason for witch the epistle or letter has been put together.
Step 11. Literary / Narrative Context
The Gospels
Powell, Mark Allan. What Is Narrative Criticism?. Powell offers a brilliant, highly accessible primer on applying modern literary theory to the study of the New Testament Gospels. Rather than breaking the text into isolated fragments like traditional source or form criticism, this guide demonstrates how to read the Gospels as unified narratives, focusing on elements such as plot structure, settings, characterization, point of view, and the dynamics between the implied author and implied reader. It remains the definitive introductory textbook for students seeking to transition from historical-critical fragmentation to holistic, narrative-driven exegesis.
Green, Joel B. The Gospel of Luke. Green’s monumental commentary stands as a masterful integration of narrative criticism and historical-social analysis. Moving beyond mere word studies, Green treats Luke's narrative as a continuous, strategically crafted story designed to shape the identity and practices of its audience. He pays special attention to Luke’s literary structures, theological themes (such as the reversal of status and the inclusion of the marginalized), and the first-century cultural backdrop of honor and shame. It is an indispensable, premier resource for advanced students and pastors seeking a thorough, narrative-sensitive reading of the Third Gospel.
The Book of Acts
Marshall, I. Howard. The Acts of the Apostles. Tyndale New Testament Commentaries. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1980. ( Read on-line) Marshall’s concise commentary provides a highly reliable, verse-by-verse exposition of the narrative of Acts, tracing the geographic and theological expansion of the early Church. Designed to be accessible yet academically grounded, the volume focuses on Luke's narrative flow, tracking how individual episodes—from Peter’s Pentecost sermon to Paul's journey to Rome—contribute to the overarching theme of unstoppable divine mission. While it lacks the exhaustive, multi-volume technicality of larger modern works, its balance of historical clarity and narrative progression makes it an excellent baseline tool for students and expositors.
The Epistles
Read carefully the whole epistle to get the literary context.
Step 12. New Testament Theology
For a list of New Testament theologies go our New Testament Theology page. The purpose of this step is that you gain a broader understanding of the biblical theological meaning of your passage.
Step 13. Secondary Resources
Visit our Bible Commentaries page.
Step 14. Real Translation
No entries yet. To be developed.
Step 15. Application or Hermeneutics
For a list on hermeneutics visit our Hermeneutics page. The purpose of this step is you to apply the text to your current culture and life situation so that it begins to speak to your contemporaries.
Last Updated (Saturday, 18 July 2026 07:11)
