'Behold, I Make All Things New': An Intertextual Analysis of New Creation in Galatians, 2 Corinthians, and Ephesians

Date of Award

2012

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

Institution Granting Degree

University of Aberdeen

Cedarville University School or Department

Biblical and Theological Studies

First Advisor

Dr. Andrew Clarke

Keywords

New creation, Galatians, 2 Corinthians, Ephesians

Abstract

This thesis investigates the relationship between the portraits of new creation in the Hauptbriefe (specifically, in 2 Corinthians and Galatians) and Ephesians. The thesis partly responds to those scholars who argue for a limited understanding (whether cosmological, anthropological, or ecclesiological) of the phrase kainh; ktivsiV in 2 Cor 5.17 and Gal 6.15. This thesis also partly responds to the lack of attention devoted to the new creation theme in Ephesians by investigating the depiction of new creation in Eph 1–2. Chapters two and three of this thesis investigate the background of new creation in the Pauline tradition through an analysis of various texts in Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, 1 Enoch, and Jubilees. These chapters demonstrate that new creation and restoration were frequently associated with anthropological and cosmological renewal, the salvation of the Gentiles, and an Urzeit-Endzeit typology. The strong correlation between Isaiah’s new exodus and ANE temple-building traditions is a particularly significant contribution of the inquiry of Isaiah. Chapters four and five of this thesis primarily analyze the depictions of new creation in Gal 6.11–16; 2 Cor 5.11–21; and Eph 1–2. A salient point of this analysis is the suggestion that Eph 1.20–2.22 may be understood as an extended discussion of new creation modeled after Isaiah’s portrait of the new exodus as an act oftemple-building. This examination demonstrates that the descriptions of new creation in all three of these texts are strongly linked with anthropological, eschatological, and ecclesiological notions, as well as an Urzeit-Endzeit typology. This thesis also points to a number of other correspondences between the portraits of new creation in the Hauptbriefe and that of Ephesians.

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