Preface
Preface
The following effort could not have been possible without the labors of many others. Scholars such as Adolf Harnack, J. B. Lightfoot, J. R. Harmer, A. Cleveland Coxe, James Kleist, William Schoedel, Josef Kürzinger, Ulrich Körtner, Bart Ehrman, Michael Holmes, and Richard Bauckham have all labored to collate and/or research the extant evidence of Papias and his magnum opus, which is commonly known as An Exposition of the Oracles of the Lord. Having gathered these fragments, they made it possible for others to research them, which many have done, predominately giving special attention to one or several at a time. With so many having focused their attention on these fragments one might wonder if there is anything new to write about Papias and his writings. I think yes; thus, the book you have before you. Regardless of your evaluation of this effort, and although I have taken issue with the conclusions of some of those mentioned above, it is important that I acknowledge their labors since their efforts were so foundational to this book.
I also wish to thank the many men and women who have personally invested in me. While I have partnered with many from churches and ministries, the individuals that I have in mind are predominately from the faculties of Dallas Theological Seminary and The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. Without their investment this book would not have been possible. Some individuals that I especially wish to thank from these faculties are Drs. Darrell Bock, Craig Blaising, Mark Bailey, Walt Baker, Howard Hendricks, Robert Stein, William Cook, Michael Haykin, and most importantly Dr. David Puckett and Dr. John Polhill. I thank Dr. Puckett for allowing me to learn a great deal about academic administration, and I especially wish to thank Dr. Polhill for graciously agreeing to supervise me throughout my Ph.D. program. I am forever in their debt. I also want to thank Professor Marsha Omanson for her interaction with this manuscript while it was a dissertation, and Dr. Adam McClendon for his proof reading efforts. May your tribes increase. Additionally, I want to thank Dr. Robin Parry for his encouragement and input, and the good people at Pickwick Publications for their efforts as well. May the Lord richly bless all while drawing all nearer to himself.
Lastly, and most importantly, I want to thank two very important people in my life. The first is my dad, who regularly keeps me grounded in the things that truly matter in life. I also want to thank my wife, who has partnered with me through thick and thin every step of the way. My life would be absent of love and so many other wonderful blessings without her gracious touch. May the Lord richly bless all who have labored before me and all who have graciously enriched my life with their own.
A search for the truth,
by the doggedness of the Holy Spirit
with the conviction to hold firm,
for the glory of Almighty God
in the matchless name of His wonderful Son,
the Lord Jesus Christ.
Monte A. Shanks
Georgetown, Indiana
December 2012