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Sort verses by chronology


Drewster

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Forgive me if this has been asked and answered, I didn't find it. 

 

I'd like to search a word and have the results sorted chronologically. For example, search pray in Paul's letters and sort chronologically (matching the Timeline).

 

Another example is toil. I'd like to see all Pauline references to laboring for believers and put that in chronological sequence and see if there's any development in his thought. I'd also like to see results on a map (where he wrote the letters and where the audience is) to add context. 

 

In the search results I don't see any way to sort, chronologically or otherwise. Is this possible? Are there any workarounds? 

 

Thank you so much.

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Hi Drewster,

 

The idea is interesting. I don't think there's a way one can enter into Accordance ones own criteria for the sort order of verses. I think what you would have to do would be this :

 

1) search for the verses you are looking for, 

2) save the references into, say, a user tool (or Word, or something like that),

3) rearrange them in the order you want, then

4) redo the search and paste those rearranged references in a [RANGE] bracket. 

 

There may be a more efficient way to do this. Someone else may want to weigh in.

 

Of course, one of the problems with the whole thing is that there are several different hypotheses concerning the dating of Paul's letters. I can think of at least four or five and, unfortunately, the hard evidence is scant, so each one of them inevitably ends up being somewhat subjective. But it can be an interesting experiment!

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Thank you, Donald. Yes, my inquiry assumes "setting dating issues aside" :) Chronology is disputed. But there is chronology in the Accordance Timeline -- 2 in fact, right (conservative, critical)? Perhaps sorting verses can use that for consistency sake. 

 

I wonder if I could do this search using a Chronology text?? As a resource it doesn't link in with the Timeline, and therefore may not be consistent with other chronologically-related data I reference. 

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I'll let someone else weigh in on this for a chronology text.

 

Concerning the timeline, yes, there are two presentations in this module, but that doesn't mean there are only two hypotheses on offer, conservative and critical. The box that comes before each book gives a probable range of dates, that of Romans, for instance, spanning 55-62 AD in the "conservative" presentation. This is surprising to me, personally, because I've never seen dates for Romans that go beyond 57, but it only goes to show that there is more than a little "wiggle" room in the dates given.

 

Plus, there are some oddities: Just as an example, Philippiens is shown after Ephesians, which is shown before Colossians. For many conservatives (most?), this is highly problematic if taken as an indication of chronological order.

 

The extent of development in Paul's thought is a highly debated issue in NT scholarship today. The idea of trying to track that development is interesting and, IMO, can be fruitful to some extent, especially if the so-called prison epistles and the pastoral epistles are recognized as pauline. But there are many unknowns and so any results need to be taken with a large grain of salt! 

 

If you are interested in pursuing the experiment, I would take some time to read through some of the more detailed and academically solid introductions to the NT first, try to come to some personal judgment about the question, then from there sort out the data on prayer in the way I mentioned previously.

 

I hope that can help a little!

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You should check out the discussion on OT chronology LOL. It is all over the place and very subjective

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Thank you, Donald, quite helpful indeed! Much more than a little :) I appreciate it, thank you. I like that course of action. I recently acquired NT Wright's The New Testament in it's World (with Michael Bird). Perhaps it has some content re dating. Nonetheless, I think the specifics you point out make me think twice about relying just on the Timeline as-is. Now if we could add our own dates to the Timeline ... (haha, kidding! I know that would open such a can of worms)

 

Matt, when I looked into dating years ago my head nearly exploded. I felt like I had to learn many languages, immerse myself in scholarship, move the middle east, etc etc etc. LOL :) So yeah to maintain sanity I have to make some estimations. 

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Thank you, Donald, quite helpful indeed! Much more than a little :) I appreciate it, thank you. I like that course of action. I recently acquired NT Wright's The New Testament in it's World (with Michael Bird). Perhaps it has some content re dating. Nonetheless, I think the specifics you point out make me think twice about relying just on the Timeline as-is. Now if we could add our own dates to the Timeline ... (haha, kidding! I know that would open such a can of worms)

 

Matt, when I looked into dating years ago my head nearly exploded. I felt like I had to learn many languages, immerse myself in scholarship, move the middle east, etc etc etc. LOL :) So yeah to maintain sanity I have to make some estimations. 

As of 2007, even more perspectives have been put forth in OT studies. It is all over the place honesty. Fascinating study! 

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You should check out the discussion on OT chronology LOL. It is all over the place and very subjective

 

Yes, when I talk to my OT colleagues or look at OT commentaries, I often think how much easier it is to be teaching NT!  :D

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