In this archived episode of The Alabaster Jar, Dr. Lynn Cohick interviews her longtime friend and New Testament scholar Dr. Jeannine Brown about biblical hermeneutics and her work on Philippians. Brown explains how her book Scripture as Communication shapes her approach to interpretation, especially concepts like the implied author and ancient rhetoric’s logos, ethos, and pathos. They also explore Philippians 3 and Paul’s reflection on his Jewish ethnic privilege, using it as a lens to talk about privilege today and how it often remains invisible to those who benefit from it. They also turn to the Christ hymn in Philippians 2, its poetic portrayal of Jesus’ downward movement to servanthood, and its strong resonances with Matthew’s theme of status reversal.  

Resources Mentioned:   

Philippians (11) (The Story of God Bible Commentary) by Dr. Lynn H. Cohick

African Hermeneutics by Dr. Elizabeth Mburu

Reading While Black: African American Biblical Interpretation as an Exercise in Hope by Dr. Esau McCaulley

What Is the Bible and How Do We Understand It? (The Jesus Way: Small Books of Radical Faith) by Dr. Dennis R. Edwards

Philippians: An Introduction and Commentary (Volume 11) (Tyndale New Testament Commentaries) by Dr. Jeannine K. Brown

South Asia Bible Commentary: A One-Volume Commentary on the Whole Bible

The Epistle to the Philippians by Dr. Markus Bockmuehl

The Letter to the Galatians (New International Commentary on the New Testament (NICNT)) by Dr. David deSilva

Africa Bible Commentary, Second Edition: A One-Volume Commentary from Over 100 African Scholars  

Scripture as Communication, 2nd Edition: Introducing Biblical Hermeneutics by Dr. Jeannine K. Brown  

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The Alabaster Jar is brought to you by The Center for Women in Leadership, a 501©3 nonprofit organization whose purpose is to equip women in a context that is biblically rooted, theologically robust, and ethnically diverse to thrive as leaders in the academy and the Church. Follow them on Instagram @leadershipwithoutapology.