Customer Reviews
Makes the simple SO very complicated! 
2008-07-17
I had to purchase this book for a Master's level course. It is the most complicated, wordy, unclear text I have ever read. I am a TEACHER and I have never even seen many of the words used in this book, much less understand their meaning! Addtionally, many passages use such complex ideology and terminology that you really have no idea what the authors are trying to say. Unless you HAVE to buy this book, DON'T!
Dry 
2008-06-13
This was one of the texts for a recent seminary course and it's perhaps one of the most boring texts I've encountered in my academic studies. Not only do the authors fail to hold the reader's interest, the layout of the text on the page is hard on the eyes. Overall it's just a chore to read. There are so many better textbooks out there (and that's what this is in the worst sense of the word) I can't imagine why anyone would choose this one!
Pure Academics 2008-04-23
This is one of my text books for school. I have to hand it to the authors they really did some research to put this book together. So why did I give it such a low rating? It was a mind-numbing read. Though I was able to glean some interesting stuff from it, it was mainly all academic knowledge. If that's your cup of tea then you will love it. For me, I prefer books that will help me grow closer to God in righteousness, love, and truth. This just didn't do it for me.
Required Resource for Pastors 
2008-01-31
This book is extensively footnoted and articulated by the best NT scholarship available. Douglas Moo and Donald Carson have given the church a profound a valuable gift. Especially helpful are critiques of liberal, neo-conservative, and post-conservative speculations and assertions which would seek to decompose the canonical NT documents. This book is full of thoughtful common sense and articulate scholarship for the average pastor, Bible student, or advanced layperson. I found the Introduction to be a tremendous help.
Very informative 
2007-06-13
The book gives great details on each book of the new testament. I actually transferred some of the information over into my bible. I really enjoyed the read. I had to read it for a class, but really enjoyed it once I got started.
A good foundation in NT studies 2006-11-09
An updated and expanded edition of a standard textbook on the New Testament for first- and second-year seminary students.
SUPERB, BALANCED REVIEW OF THE NEW TESTAMENT DATA 2006-09-07
This book is wonderful! After studying dozens of texts about the origins and modern historical analyses of the New Testament canon--ranging from Helmut Koester's Ancient Christian Gospels to Walter Bauer, Elaine Pagels, and Bart Ehrman's positivistic polemics--I finally found this book. I am a scientist (physician) and have not had the benefit of a seminary education, so I should, perhaps, have started here. The book presents thorough, well-reasoned critiques of the data and conflicting theories about the origin and significance of the entire New Testament canon, book by book. It contains ample references to the the key research and publications on various subjects, somewhat like a good scientific or medical review article. This was a very welcome contrast to the popular publications of Bart Ehrman, which typically reference only his own biased writings on any particular subject. My only criticism of this excellent text is that it gives short shrift to the history and profound exegesis of the Eastern Orthodox Church Fathers; viz. St. John Chrysostom, Basil the Great, and others. In the Orthodox tradition, we tend to view theology as a "fabric woven from on high," including revelations in the post-Apostolic era to those saints who have achieved "theosis," direct contemplation of the Divine mind.
A Fine Introduction 2006-05-26
As others have noted, this NT Introduction is a standard introductory text from an evangelical perspective. In this updated version, Carson and Moo add some good stuff on canonicity that was not part of the original Carson/Moo/Morris edition. Most of the remaining material is similar.
As can be expected, the analysis and conclusions in this Introduction are decidedly conservative on questions of authorship, canonicity, original situation of the writings, and historical reliability of the documents. The authors helpfully analyze many contemporary challenges to evangelical understandings of the NT so that the beginner and intermediate levels of readers will gain a good introductory grasp of the many bones of contention that exist over many issues in virtually every book of the NT. Moo's strong work in Romans and James, coupled with Carson's strong work on the Fourth Gospel, can be particularly seen in this book's treatment of these canonical documents.
One could have hoped for a more lengthy treatment of contemporary issues, and one could also have hoped for more robust bibliographies upon which the reader could proceed with more in-depth study. But because this is an introductory work, it is probably inappropriate to expect such things in this kind of treatment. The beginner who wants to develop a good working knowledge of NT scholarship from an evangelical perspective will likely be quite satisfied with what they find in here.
Thorough and Provocative 2006-02-27
In this new edition of Intro to the NT Carson and Moo have significantly improved the work they initially published with Leon Morris (who has since passed away). The chapters are reorganized, the margins are wider, and the material has expanded to include the contribution of works published since the first edition. Having used both editions for coursework and personal study, I find the second edition far superior. While the layout of the first edition was doable, the second is much roomier and suitable for study. More than all these considerations, the authors superbly point the reader to Christ, to become like him. I have been challenged not only academically as I've read this work, I have been also been convicted spiritually.
New edition released! 2005-07-09
Carson and Moo have thoroughly reworked this book, removing or revising Morris' contributions and adding much new material for the second edition. Some sections are rearranged, and there are a few entirely new sections. I read the original book straight through a few years ago, and I haven't found anything else that does quite as good a job of staying on top of the current scholarship while defending generally conservative evangelical views on the authorship, date, setting, purpose, and other backgrounds sorts of issues on each NT book. I expect the updated edition to be equally thorough and more up-to-date on recent trends in NT scholarship.
Particularly of note is the section on the New Perspective on Paul, which Morris and Carson have both been on the forefront of interacting with (from a more traditional perspective in both cases, though both have been willing to acknowledge that we have learned something from the NPP). They call this section brief in the introduction, but it's 11 pages, a fair amount of space compared to how much room they give to most topics. They have also provided a lengthy addition covering the history of interpretation of the NT, from the early Christians to contemporary biblical scholarship. They've also expanded of added more on the content of each book, something reviewers complained about in the first edition, and there's also a little bit on the social science approaches to NT studies, something that wasn't very far along in the original book. All in all, the new edition sounds as if it should be excellent.
They've removed the dust jacket and replaced it with a visually appealing cover on the book itself, and they've increased the margin size significantly, both of which suit its primary use as a seminary textbook. They list the intended audience as seminary students in the first and second years, but a studious enough person can read it for profit without the additional seminary background. I read the entire first edition without any seminary training at all. It's certainly not the level of detail a scholar would want for an exhaustive treatment of every issue, but the bibliographies and footnotes can provide further reading to get exactly that, and it would be ill-suited for students if it tried to do too much.
This has been the standard evangelical NT introduction for quite a while, and as of the revision its place will be secured for quite a while.
