The Books of the New Testament — Story, Setting & Ideas

Chapter-by-Chapter Architecture

The work is divided into twenty chapters, each corresponding to a New Testament book or group of books. The table of contents reveals a consistent pattern: after an introductory chapter on “The New Testament” and one on “The Gospels,” individual Gospels receive separate treatment, followed by Acts, then Paul’s epistles in approximate chronological order, and finally the Catholic Epistles and Revelation. Within each chapter, Pullan uses sidenotes to label subsections—e.g., “The Author,” “To whom written,” “Date,” “Contents.” This scaffolding makes the argument easy to follow, though it can feel formulaic. The Galatians chapter, for instance, moves from authorship to destination to date to a detailed outline of the epistle’s argument, with each section clearly demarcated.

Recurring Preoccupation with Authorship

Across the excerpts, Pullan repeatedly defends traditional authorship attributions. For Galatians, he asserts that Pauline authorship “has never been called in question by a critic of first-rate importance” and cites Irenaeus, Clement of Alexandria, and Tertullian. He contrasts the errors criticized in Galatians with later Ebionite and Gnostic heresies, arguing that the epistle’s “broken sentences and earnest appeals” bear the mark of authenticity. This pattern recurs: Pullan marshals external testimony and internal stylistic evidence, often dismissing forgery hypotheses as implausible. His tone is measured but firm, aiming to reassure readers that critical scholarship need not undermine traditional views.

Geographical and Historical Grounding

Pullan devotes considerable space to locating each book in its historical and geographical context. In the Galatians chapter, he spends several paragraphs on the meaning of “Galatia”—whether it refers to the northern Celtic region or the southern Roman province. He weighs arguments from Acts, Paul’s usage of political terms (Asia, Macedonia, Achaia), and the presence of Jews and local religious practices. He notes that the Phrygians “doted on a sombre and mysterious religion” involving Cybele worship, suggesting this background may explain the Galatians’ receptivity to Jewish legalism. Such details ground the epistle in a specific cultural landscape, moving beyond abstract theological discussion.

Movement Between Summary and Detail

Pullan’s prose alternates between broad overview and granular analysis. The Galatians chapter begins with a concise defense of authorship, then narrows to the destination debate, then expands into a summary of the epistle’s contents, broken into four sections: i. 1-10, i. 11-ii. 21, iii. 1-v. 1, v. 1-vi. 18. Each section is described in a sentence or two, giving the reader a roadmap. This movement from macro to micro recurs throughout the excerpts: the Corinthians chapter similarly divides 2 Corinthians into four parts with descriptive headings. Pullan’s method helps readers navigate complex texts without losing sight of the whole.

Pullan’s introduction is best read as a companion to the New Testament itself, not as a substitute. Readers unfamiliar with the biblical text may find the chapter outlines most useful after reading the corresponding book. The work’s conservative stance is evident, but its engagement with contemporary scholarship—especially on dating and geography—gives it lasting value as a document of early twentieth-century Anglican biblical studies. The frequent sidenotes and clear section breaks make it easy to dip into for reference.

In my years shelving theology, Pullan’s careful handling of authorship questions always reminded me of a patient scholar tracing a letter’s provenance. That same unhurried, almost reverent attention to historical roots lives in Understanding the Scriptures — Reading Notes, a quieter companion that hums the same tune. They sit together on my shelf like two old friends, sharing gentle, knowing glances across the decades.