Ehrman Chapter 1 What Is the New Testament? Test Bank Docx

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 01

1. The term “canon” means _____.

a. orthodox

b. heretical

c. authoritative

d. measuring rod

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 02

2. How many books are there in the New Testament?

a. 25

b. 26

c. 27

d. 28

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 03

3. Which of the following is not a designation for the Jewish canon?

a. Old Testament

b. Judaism

c. Hebrew Bible

d. Jewish Scriptures

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 04

4. The Hebrew Bible includes which of the following?

a. Prophets

b. Gospels

c. Acts

d. Apocrypha

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 05

5. The New Testament was written in what language?

a. Greek

b. Hebrew

c. Aramaic

d. Latin

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 06

6. The word “gospel” means _____.

a. life

b. good news

c. divine writing

d. salvation

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 07

7. The New Testament Gospels are traditionally ascribed to all of the following except _____.

a. John

b. Luke

c. Paul

d. Mark

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 08

8. The New Testament Gospels are _____.

a. anonymous

b. written in Hebrew

c. composed by Paul

d. the only early Christian Gospels

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 09

9. Which of the following is not a New Testament Epistle?

a. Ephesians

b. Jude

c. 3 Corinthians

d. Hebrews

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 10

10. Which book describes the early spread of Christianity?

a. Gospel of Mark

b. Acts of the Apostles

c. Revelation

d. The Shepherd of Hermas

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 11

11. The word “epistle” means _____.

a. biography

b. letter

c. conversation

d. right choice

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 12

12. How many epistles are in the New Testament?

a. 10

b. 13

c. 21

d. 27

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 13

13. The New Testament epistles primarily focus on _____.

a. the life of Jesus

b. early Christian beliefs, practices, and ethics

c. the description of future apocalyptic events

d. the life of Luke

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 14

14. How many books in the New Testament claim to be written by Paul?

a. 13

b. 10

c. 8

d. 5

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 15

15. Which of the following is a New Testament epistle?

a. Romans

b. Revelation

c. Acts of the Apostles

d. Psalms

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 16

16. The book of Revelation is written in what genre?

a. biography

b. folktale

c. history

d. apocalypse

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 17

17. What is the name of the author of the book of Revelation?

a. Paul

b. John

c. Jesus

d. Luke

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 18

18. What is the name of a collection of second-century early Christian writings?

a. Pentateuch

b. New Testament

c. Acts of the Apostles

d. Apostolic Fathers

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 19

19. The Nag Hammadi writings were found in the mid- _____.

a. 1930s

b. 1950s

c. 1940s

d. 1980s

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 20

20. Nag Hammadi is a town in _____.

a. Egypt

b. Israel

c. Italy

d. Greece

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 21

21. The Nag Hammadi codices are written in what language?

a. Latin

b. Greek

c. Hebrew

d. Coptic

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 22

22. How many writings were discovered at Nag Hammadi?

a. 21

b. 27

c. 45

d. 52

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 23

23. By the end of what century did Christians begin to call Jesus’ words scripture?

a. first century BCE

b. first century CE

c. second century CE

d. fifth century CE

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 24

24. Which of the following was not a criterion for canonicity?

a. antiquity

b. apostolicity

c. orthodoxy

d. historical accuracy

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 25

25. In the study of early Christianity, the term “heretical” means _____.

a. diverse

b. false

c. orthodox

d. ancient

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 26

26. In what year did a Christian first list the current 27 books of the New Testament as authoritative?

a. 150 CE

b. 288 CE

c. 367 CE

d. 432 CE

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 27

27. The earliest copy of anything from the New Testament is a small scrap containing portions of verses from the Gospel of John from approximately _____ years after the book’s original composition

a. 20

b. 40

c. 70

d. 100

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 28

28. Approximately how many Greek copies of the New Testament survive?

a. 500

b. 1,000

c. 2,500

d. 5,000

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 29

29. Which of the following does not characterize the surviving Greek manuscripts of the New Testament?

a. They were produced by scribes.

b. They occasionally lack verses.

c. They were produced in the first century.

d. There are differences among them.

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 30

30. Which traditional Christian doctrine is only explicitly taught in a passage most likely not originally in the New Testament?

a. virgin birth

b. Trinity

c. justification by faith

d. substitutionary atonement

Type: essay/short answer question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 01

1. Describe the process of the canonization of the New Testament. When might it have begun? When did it end? What factors were involved in choosing books?

Feedback: The New Testament books were written between 50 and 120 CE. By the end of the first century, Christians were calling Jesus’ and Paul’s words scripture. Throughout the second, third, and even fourth centuries, Christians debated which books should be included in the canon. There were three primary criteria for inclusion: the books had to be ancient, written by an apostle, and accepted among proto-orthodox congregations as reflecting orthodox belief. It was not until 367 CE that the twenty-seven books of the modern Christian canon were listed as authoritative scripture by Athanasius, the bishop of Alexandria.

Type: essay/short answer question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 02

2. The New Testament is made up of four sections. What are these and what kinds of books are found within each section?

Feedback: The Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) tell the story of Jesus—his life, ministry, and death. Next is Acts of the Apostles, the story of the spread of Christianity from the death of Jesus to the death of Paul. Following Acts are twenty-one epistles, thirteen of which claim to have been written by Paul. The New Testament epistles are records of communications between Christian leaders and Christian communities. They reveal Christian practice, belief, and ethics. Revelation, an apocalypse, is the last book in the New Testament; it narrates the destruction of this world and the appearance of the world to come.

Type: essay/short answer question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 03

3. Discuss how reading each New Testament book independently from a historical perspective is different from reading the New Testament canonically. What differences might result from this historical approach?

Feedback: This approach reveals remarkable diversity within the New Testament. The New Testament is diverse, both in terms of the types of literature it includes and the perspectives it represents. Students should discuss how the various books circulated independently for a long period of time prior to the creation of the New Testament canon. The books were not composed with the intent of being included in a broad, unified collection. An awareness of this historical situation encourages us to be attentive to the individual messages of each book, rather than read and interpret the books in light of one another, assuming their general agreement. When we approach the texts individually, we can begin to recognize the distinctive emphases and interests of each author.

Type: essay/short answer question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 04

4. In antiquity, books were typically copied one letter at a time. How does this process of transmission present a problem to historians trying to determine what the New Testament authors wrote?

Feedback: In antiquity, books were copied by hand, one letter at a time. This process allowed for scribal errors, both intentional and unintentional. If a scribe made a mistake or change, that would be copied by a subsequent scribe and so the changes continued to be transmitted. Because we do not have the originals of any of the New Testament books, we cannot know for sure what the authors wrote. Of the 5,000 manuscripts of the New Testament that we now have, no two are exactly alike. Most of the differences are relatively minor (e.g., spelling differences) and have no theological import. Some differences, however, are immensely important.

Type: essay/short answer question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 01

1. What are the four types of writings included in the New Testament? (You should memorize the names of the books of the New Testament in order and know which division in which each book belongs.)

Type: essay/short answer question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 02

2. Who are the Apostolic Fathers, and how are they relevant to the study of the New Testament?

Type: essay/short answer question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 03

3. How do the following terms relate to one another? Jewish Scriptures, Hebrew Bible, and Old Testament.

Type: essay/short answer question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 04

4. How did some of the early Christian writings get collected into the New Testament? What motivated Christians to create a canon of Scripture?

Type: essay/short answer question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 05

5. Why were some of the early Christian books included in this canon, but others not? Who made these decisions? On what grounds? When?

Type: essay/short answer question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 06

6. Give several examples of early Christian writings that did not come to be included in the New Testament.

Type: essay/short answer question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 07

7. What does it mean to speak about the diversity of the New Testament? What does recognition of this diversity afford the reader?

Type: essay/short answer question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 08

8. What is the difference between a historical and a confessional approach to the New Testament?

Type: essay/short answer question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 09

9. In what sense is it true to say that we don’t have the original New Testament?

Type: essay/short answer question

Title: Chapter 01 Question 10

10. How did early Christian scribes alter the New Testament manuscripts they copied? Do these changes make any difference in interpreting early Christian belief?