New Testament Rhetoric: An Introductory Guide to the Art of Persuasion in and of the New Testament

James italiano

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Book by Ben Witherington III

Précis:

Introduction to the work

Because the New Testament World relied on orality (spoken word) rather than written word, the study of rhetoric is important to the bible reader today. Witherington defines rhetoric as the art of persuasion. This alone should give today’s preacher a desire to study this book. This book suggests strongly that rhetoric was a vital educational tool at the basic level. To understand, for instance, Paul’s rhetoric would greatly increase our understanding of his theology and purposes. The art of rhetoric is the ancient art of preaching. This book can serve as a guide to better preaching and persuasion.

Chapter 1 The Oral Cultures of the Biblical World

All of the cultures of the Bible were essentially oral cultures, not text based. Literacy rates could be as low as 5%. This fact is important and shows that they preferred the living word, or spoken text. The cost of producing a document was very costly also. Ink, papyrus, or hiring a secretary was very expensive. So the letters of the New Testament –the focus of this book, were meant to be audibly, not read silently. Also worth noting is that a biblical letter would be read out loud to a group of people. These letters or documents were cherished and listened to closely. The rhetorical devices that would be implemented would be used on purpose. Assonance, alliteration, rhythm, and rhyme were part of many letters. The New Testament’s twenty-seven books show considerable skill and rhetorical prowess. Religious words were believed to contain power in this oral culture, and these New Testament letters were scared and honored, and those who read these letters to others would be schooled in rhetorical criticism, or the art of speaking well. They used rhetorical question, dramatic hyperbole, personification, amplification, irony, enthymemes and the like. These are micro-rhetoric. On a macro-rhetorical plane they used: the exordium, which precedes and ‘salts’ the material that follows, the narration, which explains the facts that are relevant to the thesis, the propositio which is the thesis statement, the probatio which future strengthens the propositio, and is sometimes followed by the refutatio which share arguments against the thesis or main point of the rhetoric. Finally, the peroratio sums up the main argument and makes a closing appeal to the listener.

Chapter 2 Defining and Refining the Craft of Persuasion: The History and Practice of Ancient Rhetoric

Rhetoric has considered an art that required the honing of skills and careful practice. Plato and Aristotle both discussed the matter, and the Golden age of Greece required rhetoric to convince political rivals. These titans of the past also recognized the ethical responsibility ion using rhetoric. Rhetoric is at the foundation of speaking well. Children’s education always included rhetoric, and this would continue to higher education also through skilled teachers of the art. It is noteworthy that education in these times was a privileged of the elite. It tells us something about the leaders of early Christianity that they could read and write, and several of them had rhetorical skills as well. Generally speaking rhetoric was part of the training of wealthy males seeking to enter the cursus honorum, climbing up the ladder of public office and pursuing a career in public life in one way or another, whether as a lawyer, a senator, an ambassador, a government employee, or the similar jobs. And like todays entertainment consumption, most ancient peoples were avid consumers of good rhetoric. Cultural considerations would have to be present in good rhetoric in New Testament times. Honor and Shame were driving values in Paul’s day for instance, and the rhetoric found in his letters honors these standards. Understanding rhetorical form and function will serve us well in understanding the New Testament.

Chapter 3 Gospels of Persuasion: Mark and Luke

It may seem odd that the story of the Hebrew Messiah from the great Jewish nation would bow down to employing the user-friendly Greek language to spread its Good News, but it is true. Besides that, rhetoric drawn from the Greek world was also in use to share and enhance the message. The message was for the masses, and they needed not only to be informed but also persuaded. Mark is shown to be ‘boiled down’ material from Peter, forming a “chreia’ or a short story with a moral at the end. One reason was that papyrus and limited word space was a real issue. Rhetoric and its principles were followed to help. Mark 6:1-6 and 7:24-30 are used in this chapter to highlight the examples of chreia and also Mark 10, showing a climax at the end with a sage like saying. Parables in Mark are also covered and show intentional deliberate arguments to add force to the message that Mark wanted his readers to receive.

Luke’s gospel is covered next. His rhetoric and Greek language skills are far more sophisticated than Mark’s. Luke actually functions as a historian with rhetoric informed skills. Luke gives us historical synchronisms, synching up the micro-history of his main story with the macro-history of the Empire – with examples shown in this chapter. He is alone in this feature. When Luke recorded speeches, he had in mind a way of editing them down for rhetorically appropriate listening or reading. They were fit for a historian like himself. Luke’s skills at parabolic usage are studied in this chapter.

Chapter 4 Early Christian Homilies: The Rhetorical Speech Summaries in Acts

Because the Christian movement was on the rise, and the intention of the early

New Testament contributor was evangelism, and persuasion was needed for this message that was looked upon with suspect, when Luke covered a speech he used considerable rhetoric skill and finesse. The spoken Word of the Lord was considered powerful and life changing, so Luke wanted to convey accurately that word. It is shown in this chapter just how he used important rhetoric skill in this task. It is noteworthy that over one third of the narrative in Acts to devoted to speeches—some 365 verses out of about 1000; 295 of these verses occur in the some twenty-four speeches. There are actually some 27–28 speech summaries in Acts, plus some eight partial speech summaries and three dialogues. This chapter covers how Luke the historian handled these speeches: both in rhetorical re-issuing of them, and how he handled the interruptions that occurred while the speeches were being made.

Different rhetorical devices are also shared in this chapter such as: amplification, accumulation, the ‘let it be known refrain’, insinuation, and throwing the gauntlet. Major elements of rhetorical discourse are covered in the Acts speeches: the exordium, which precedes and ‘salts’ the material that follows, the narration, which explains the facts that are relevant to the thesis, the propositio which is the thesis statement, the probatio which future strengthens the propositio, and is sometimes followed by the refutatio which share arguments against the thesis or main point of the rhetoric. Finally, the peroratio sums up the main argument and makes a closing appeal to the listener.

Stephen’s speech is covered well in this chapter, also rhetoric in the synagogue, rhetoric for pagans, and rhetoric for Christian leaders. Paul’s conversion is covered also in all of its unique rhetorical fashion. We see in this chapter that Luke knew what he was doing in the Greek world, using rhetoric and linguistic forms to enhance and add force to a message much needed to the world. God inspired this activity at that time, and we can learn much about the operation of God through the spoken word today by seeing these ideas in action then. Today’s preacher should pay attention to this chapter (and Luke’s wisdom in writing).

Chapter 5 Paul the Rhetor and Writer

When learning about Paul, this chapter shows the importance of Paul’s literacy and his skills with rhetoric and letter writing. He was by no means an ordinary person of the first century, which Christians understand. His letters have shaped Christianity more than any of the New Testament figures. Letter writing and the forming of rhetorical discourses were so interwoven in the case of Paul, because he spent so much time communicating from a distance to various of his churches, and this is looked at in this chapter. Pauline letters are largely structured by rhetorical conventions and concerns. This chapter covers: the education and social skills of the earliest Christians, considering the implications of non- education in the church , Paul’s education, and Paul’s re-education in the reality of a risen Jesus. Letter writing is covered next, and is a grand topic and worth understanding, especially that we have a letter rich group of texts in our New Testament. Letter such as we have in our New Testament were costly to produce and deliver. They were going to be read by many people, and at times passed around to others of the Jesus group. Although similar to the Greco-Roman wording and phraseology of everyday letters unearthed in the ruins, the length and complexity of Paul’s writings immediately speak of a higher purpose. This purpose was to persuade men to trust in Christ (2Cor. 5:11,Gal.1:10). It was the means that God used to spread the good news of the new and better way of the salvation offer. These topics are covered in this and other chapters, although this book is more academic and dry in nature. This chapter in particular covers great amounts of material.

The idea that Paul was meant to be heard, not read or studied is covered here in detail. Also Paul’s education and its influence on these letters are looked at. The role of a secretary in early letter writing especially Paul is interesting in this chapter. Paul also customized standard letter writing structure, and in this chapter that is looked at deeply and the significance of it. Prevalent types of rhetoric in Paul’s letters are covered.

Chapter 6 The Elementary Rhetoric of the Pastorals

This chapter deals with the fact that the Pastoral Epistles sound and look different than Paul’s other letters. It shows how Lukan influence and secretarial skills were used on these letters, and also that Paul took a moral rhetorical stance on some. Also they were personal letters written to a person, not a group or church. These topics are covered. The rhetorical character and substance of the pastorals is the next subject covered in this chapter. Little study has been done in this area, and Witherington covers it well. The idea of the sender of a letter and the receiver can give us insight into the letter itself. The Pastorals have a ‘preaching to the choir’ bent, and the elementary rhetoric found in them is used because of the common belief system of both Paul and the receiver of the letter (Timothy or Titus for instance). The use of maxims such as “ all Cretans are liars” (Titus 1:12) helps Paul make a rhetorical point, such as in the proverbs. Paul used skill andcontrast in tiring to encourage godly living in the church as opposed to loose or riotous living. Rhetorical comparison or synkrisis became especially effective as a means of this persuasion. Pauline literature would paint the contrast between that which was to be emulated and that which was to be avoided.

An example of comparison by contrast

The Elder:

The False Teacher:

House manager

House wrecker

Blameless

Defiled conscience and works

Not pursuing dishonest gain

Unscrupulous teaching for gain

Not quick tempered or intemperate

Acting like a wild beast

Holding fast to sound tradition

Embracing myths and human Commands

Truthful and refuting error

Liar, deceiver, embracing and teaching error

Chapter 7 The Rhetoric of the General Epistles

The first book covered here is 1 Peter. Taught is the fact that the author is busily constructing a rhetorical world, a world of advice and consent, of persuasion and dissuasion, where certain beliefs and behaviors are inculcated not merely for social reasons but also for theological or ideological ones. Peter used an ‘Asiatic’ rhetoric because he addressed the surrounding provinces of western Turkey. That was the most potent type of rhetoric in the area. Peter knew how to make his point! This is another push for wisdom in sharing out faith. Peter’s rhetoric skill ( in this Asian type) can be seen by 1) its long and sometimes convoluted sentences; 2) its verbosity, and use of colorful words; 3) its tendency towards repetition of both aural and cognitive features of the discourse; and 4) its strong appeals to the emotions at the outset and conclusion as suffering becomes a major theme in the discourse—not just any kind of suffering but specifically suffering for what one believes and lives out as a religious person.[1]

Students and teachers have had trouble in the past trying to study Peter’s epistles. By trying to take the document’s form and structure, and comparing Paul’s letters or other letters of that time has not worked. That is using what Witherington calls an epistolary analysis. Epistolary analysis only helps us with analyzing some of the epistles of the NT, and even then it mostly only helps with analyzing how they begin and end. Peter’s documents are mainly structured on the basis of rhetorical considerations, not epistolary ones, as they are oral documents— they meant to be read aloud to their various audiences. This consideration is found throughout the book and is a helpful truth to the bible student and teacher. I found this to be true on a Wednesday night bible study in a local church. When the speaker read Romans, chapter 12 and stopped to comment on individual verses, I commented later that it would have been better to read that passage as a whole, with verbal skill, and the rhetoric used would have help the hearers to understand, and get the force of what Paul wanted to convey.

This chapter also looks at the rhetoric of Silas, John’s rhetoric in 1John which is ‘Love’, and the rhetoric of Hebrews: faith and faithfulness.

Chapter 8 The Difference Rhetoric Makes to NT Interpretation

Education in America in the late 19th century hurt the liberal arts. With the focus on math and science, classes on rhetoric, logic, natural and revealed religion and the classics studies and ancient history went by the wayside. These fields would have complimented Biblical studies. Today’s church and its ordinary students may never hear a teaching on the rhetorical character of the New Testament. Students if the bible tend to read and study an epistle as a textbook, missing the wisdom that can come from a rhetorical approach. Some great realizations are given in this chapter, along with some guidelines for a new approach to Biblical study. The first is that a failure to recognize a propositio (thesis statement) or peroration leads to misunderstanding of the character and themes of a document. Another is failure to correctly identify the species of rhetoric in a discourse leads to false conclusions. We see this today with all odd and suspect ideas being promoted as a new revelation. When Jesus said to cut your hand off if it causes you to sin he didn’t mean to do it. Paul also did not conclude that ‘sin’ was a person inside of him causing him to do wrong. These are some of the wrong conclusions that can be avoided with a correct rhetorical approach.

Failure to recognize “impersonation” as a rhetorical device, failure to recognize the way a rhetorical comparison works, failure to see the difference between modern and ancient persuasion, and overlooking the way personifications work in a rhetorical discourse are also addressed.

[1]Witherington, B., III. (2009). New Testament Rhetoric: An Introductory Guide to the Art of Persuasion in and of the New Testament (p. 179). Eugene, OR: Cascade Books.

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