A Voyage around the Second Letter of Peter: Collected Essays by Terrance Callan (review)

A Voyage around the Second Letter of Peter is a collection of twelve previously published essays in which Terrance Callan displays an array of methodologies to illuminate some of the treasures in the text.

In the first essay, "Use of the Letter of Jude by the Second Letter of Peter," it is not possible for C. to cover the topic in a chapter of this length. While C. is thorough in the passages he treats through Redaktiongeschichte, he does not subject the entire document to that level of scrutiny. C. draws conclusions about the entire message of 2 Peter by the redactions he examines, which, I would argue, are incorrect, given that they are based on incomplete data.

"The Christology of the Second Letter of Peter" shows that the biblical author affirmed Jesus's divinity. C. is meticulous in defining the different understandings of divinity and the person of God/other gods, which he delineates carefully by era and location. Particularly helpful is his distinction between Semitic and Hellenistic usage of "son of." This chapter is useful beyond 2 Peter in tracing the myriad uses of "God," "Lord," "divine," and "son of," throughout the biblical and extrabiblical corpora.

In "The Soteriology of the Second Letter of Peter," C. thoroughly demonstrates the text's claim that Jesus saves people by purchasing them, as well as providing the historical background of the practice. People's salvation, C. claims, can be undone by serving their old master; thus, "salvation only becomes final when this world is destroyed at the end of time" (p. 47). However, C. makes a few unfounded, problematic claims, for example, presuming that the author of 2 Peter asserts that the purchase was made by Jesus's blood by citing Rev 5:9, saying that "faith is a synonym for recognition of Jesus" (p. 43) without any proof.

"The Style of the Second Letter of Peter" provides an overview of ancient literary forms, as defined by Cicero, and demonstrates how to analyze style in a way that applies beyond 2 Peter. C. argues that 2 Peter fits the grand, Asian style, which may help determine its provenance and the educational background of the author.

Recognizing that some scholars disagree and other scholars do not address the issue of 2 Pet 1:1–7 at all, in "The Syntax of 2 Peter 1:1–7," C. argues that 2 Pet 1:3–4 "should be understood as the protasis of a conditional sentence of which vv. 5–7 are the apodosis" (p. 74). As dialogue partners, C. relies on other scholars, the most revered grammarians, and examples from the LXX, the NT, and other ancient Greek literature.

In "A Note on 2 Peter 1:19–20," C. turns to grammar, vocabulary, and the use of παρουσία throughout 2 Peter to argue that ἐν ταῖς καρδίαις ὑμῶν ("in your hearts") should be understood as modifying γινώσκοντες ("to know") in 1:20 rather than ἀνατείλῃ ("to rise") in v. 19, as most commentators do. While there is no grammatical reason to disprove the usual understanding, the rest of 2 Peter does not envision the παρουσία as "an inner, psychological event" in which Jesus would rise "in your hearts" (p. 85) if the phrase modifies ἀνατείλῃ.

In "Rhetography and Rhetology of Apocalyptic Discourse in 2 Peter," C. applies Vernon K. Robbins's socio-rhetorical interpretation and defines Robbins's five aspects of texts and six basic kinds of early Christian discourse (see Robbins, The Tapestry of Early Christian Discourse: Rhetoric, Society, and Ideology [London: Routledge, 1996]; and Exploring the Texture of Texts: A Guide to Socio-Rhetorical Interpretation [Valley Forge, PA: Trinity Press International, 1996]). C. limits his application of the methodology to 1:16–2:10a; 3:1–13 as the most concentrated sections of apocalyptic discourse.

In "Comparison of Humans to Animals in 2 Peter 2:10b–22," C. scours ancient literature to elucidate how animals and humans were compared. While the comparisons can be positive or negative, 2 Peter uses...