Across the history of Christianity, Paul's letters have been mined for doctrines like original sin and the "Fall" of Adam or for arguing that justification is by faith, not by works. J. Paul Sampley's concern is not first with doctrines but with how Paul instructed, encouraged, built up- and, at times, chided - the followers who trekked behind him in "the upward call of God in Christ Jesus," (Phil. 3:14). Sampley writes particularly for readers today who seek insight into the spiritual and moral life but are perplexed by the apostle. While taking seriously the distance between Paul and our time, he also understands Paul's relevance for those seeking to live responsibly in a broken and alienated world. Sampley articulates how important themes in his letters - the grand narrative of God's action, the new creation, the power of baptism and of the Lord's Supper-serve the basic goal of calling people to faithful living and to "walking in love," for God and for each other. Walking in Love is a clear exposition of the ethical dimension of Paul's complex theology.

"Paul and Rhetoric contains essays that have been presented in a seminar called "Paul and Rhetoric" in the annual meetings of the Studiorum Novi Testamenti Societas, the leading international forum for New Testament and Christian Origin scholars. Translated into English, these essays, by leaders in the field and in the topic, engage and represent modern scholarship on Paul and rhetorical studies. The foundational essays are listed under the heading "State of the Discussion", attempting to take the major rhetorical categories of the time contemporary with Paul (types of rhetoric, invention and arrangement, and figures and tropes) and, first, lays out where the discussion is now. They then note the problems and highlights where continued discussion and deliberation would be helpful. The "Broad Questions" section asks what can be learned about reading Paul's letters to congregations in light of ancient epistolography, how theology and rhetoric are related (because the two are often treated as if they are alien to one another), and how ancient rhetoric and ancient psychology are associated with one another. All in all a volume that illustrates, examines and assesses where we are now in the study of rhetorical traditions in Pauline scholarship, and in some instances suggests the direction of future studies."

In this detailed exegesis of Ephesians 5: 21-33 Dr Sampley not only elucidates the meaning of this difficult and historically important passage, but he also discusses and describes the background and sources of the Epistle. In particular he traces the history of the traditions incorporated in it and demonstrates convincingly that the writer of Ephesians drew heavily on certain passages in Genesis and Leviticus. Ephesians can be seen as a mosaic of traditions ingeniously arranged and employed to express the new message of the early church. This book should be of interest to all Old and New Testament scholars.

Paul and Rhetoric contains essays that have been presented in a seminar called "Paul and Rhetoric" in the annual meetings of the Studiorum Novi Testamenti Societas, the leading international forum for New Testament and Christian Origin scholars. Translated into English, these essays, by leaders in the field and in the topic, engage and represent modern scholarship on Paul and rhetorical studies. The foundational essays are listed under the heading "State of the Discussion", attempting to take the major rhetorical categories of the time contemporary with Paul (types of rhetoric, invention and arrangement, and figures and tropes) and, first, lays out where the discussion is now. They then note the problems and highlights where continued discussion and deliberation would be helpful. The "Broad Questions" section asks what can be learned about reading Paul's letters to congregations in light of ancient epistolography, how theology and rhetoric are related (because the two are often treated as if they are alien to one another), and how ancient rhetoric and ancient psychology are associated with one another. All in all a volume that illustrates, examines and assesses where we are now in the study of rhetorical traditions in Pauline scholarship, and in some instances suggests the direction of future studies.