Introduction to Ezra by Frank Marshall

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Map of Jerusalem to Illustrate the Book of Ezra by Frank MarshallThe Rev Frank Marshall is better known today for his role as a rugby football referee than as a theologian. Nevertheless this slim little volume, written to prepare students preparing for their Oxford and Cambridge exams, provides a very helpful introduction to the book of Ezra. It also includes four useful colour maps. This title is in the public domain.

Frank Marshall [1848-1906], The Old Testament: Ezra. London: George Gill & Sons, n.d. Hbk. pp.52. [Click to visit the download page]

Table of Contents

  • Introduction to the Book of Ezra
  • The Book of Ezra with Marginal and Foot notes
  • Comments on the Revised Version
  • Glossary
  • Appendix
  • Tables of Events in Ezra

Preface

The Book of Ezra is one of a series of manuals on the books of the Old Testament which are primarily intended for the use of Students preparing for the Local Examinations of the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge.

The Introduction treats fully of the several subjects with which the Student should be acquainted, comprising full Geographical and Biographical Notes, historical references to the ancient monarchies of the Eastern world, and other important details, which are clearly set forth in the Table of Contents.

The chief alterations of the Revised Version are pointed out in footnotes, the Student being referred to the Revised Version.

In the Appendix will be found (1) a Commentary upon the most important differences between the Authorized and Revised Versions, the alterations being pointed out and explanations given of the reasons for the change ; (2) a Glossary of words and phrases, thus avoiding constant reference to the text and notes…

For more resources on the Book of Ezra visit this page

M’Clymont’s Introduction to the New Testament and its Writers on-line

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James Alexander M’Clymont [1848-1927] provides a substantial introduction to the New Testament. I found it interesting that the author makes frequent references to J.J. Blunt’s Undesigned Coincidences as positive evidence of the New Testament’s historical accuracy and truthfulness. If you want to download Blunt’s book to explore his argument, click here. Thanks to Book Aid for providing a copy of this book for digitisation. This title is in the public domain.

Map Illustrating the Missionary Journeys of the Apostle Paul

James Alexander M’Clymont [1848-1927], The New Testament and Its Writers. Being an Introduction to the Books of the New Testament. London: Adam & Charles Black, 1893. Hbk. pp.288. [Click to visit the download page for this title]

Contents

  • Preface
  1. The New Testament
  2. The Gospels
  3. “The Gospel According to St. Matthew”
  4. “The Gospel According to St. Mark”
  5. “The Gospel According to St. Luke”
  6. “The Gospel According to St. John”
  7. “The Acts of the Apostles”
  8. The Epistles: The Epistles of St. Paul
  9. “The First Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Thessalonians”; “The Second Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Thessalonians”
  10. “The First Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Corinthians”
  11. “The Second Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Corinthians”
  12. “The Epistle of Paul to the Galatians”
  13. “The Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Romans”
  14. The Epistles of the Imprisonment; “The Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Philippians”
  15. “The Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Colossians”
  16. “The Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Ephesians”
  17. The Pastoral Epistles; “The First Epistle of Paul the Apostle to Timothy”
  18. “The Epistle of Paul to Titus”; “The Second Epistle of Paul the Apostle to Timothy”
  19. “The Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Hebrews”
  20. The Catholic Epistles; “The General Epistle of James”
  21. “The First Epistle General of Peter”
  22. “The Second Epistle General of Peter”; “The General Epistle of Jude
  23. “The First Epistle General of John”; The Second Epistle of John”; “The Third Epistle of John”
  24. “The Revelation of St. John the Divine”
  • Appendix

Preface

The favourable reception accorded to The New Testament and Its Writers in its original form, as one of the series of Guild and Bible-Class Text-books issued by the Christian Life and Work Committee of the Church of Scotland, has encouraged the author to present it in a form more suitable for general readers. While serving other purposes, he believes it may be specially helpful to ministers and other teachers who are using the small edition in their Bible Classes….

For more New Testament resources go here.

New Sources of Funding for Theology on the Web

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Funding

I recently posted a poll in the Theology on the Web Facebook Group asking for suggestions as to how I could secure regular funding to continue to develop Theology on the Web. This is because Income from affiliate links, Google ads and one-off donations have fallen, while server costs will rise in September this year as I add more web space to the server. Before I begin I wanted to thank those who contributed their ideas to the post and to give some feedback in the hope of provoking further discussion. I also want to thank the couple who have now signed up to support the sites regularly.

Here are the options the Group suggested:

Open a Patreon Account

For those not familiar with it Patreon provides a superb service intended to offer support for artists and creators by offering regular supporters special deals, such as early access to new products, etc. 14 people voted for this option.

There are several reasons why I cannot take up this option, but for brevity I will mention only one. As part of my agreement with the publishers and authors who contribute content I undertake not to sell their work, but to make it available to everyone free of charge. I think that offering such content for payment, even for only a short period, conflicts with this obligation.

Add a PayPal Donate Button

8 people voted for this. To be honest I was a little bemused by this suggestion, as every page on my websites (over 2,000 of them), already has a PayPal donate button at the very top of the left-hand sidebar. I wondered if it was not obvious enough?

Approach your Church to Make it a Ministry of the Church

2 people voted for this. I know from experience that getting for support for providing theological resources is difficult even from those who are using the websites regularly. Promoting to those who have never heard of it is not likely to succeed.

Initiate a GoFundMe – Education Fundraiser

4 people voted for this. A few years ago my supporters responded very generously to my GoFundMe campaign to raise money for a new laptop. GoFundMe is great for one-off requests, but I would not be comfortable about making the same request each year. However, if I reach a funding crisis, I may have to take up this option in the short-term to keep the sites running.

Advertise my Bible College / Seminary on the websites

11 people voted for this option. As I mentioned above that income from Google ads has now fallen to such a low level. SO low, in fact, that I have today removed all the Google banner ads from the websites. This will give me enough space for two more seminaries / Bible Colleges to place vertical banner ads.

This is my preferred option. Please pass on this offer of advertising on to those in charge at your institutions to see if they are interested or sponsoring the websites in some other way. My contact details are here. If you would like to support the websites as an individual please visit the support page for suggestions of how you can best do so.