As a sequel to the hugely successful Jesus and the Heritage of Israel this book brings together fourteen internationally acclaimed scholars in antiquities studies and experts on Paul and Luke. The contributors provoke new approaches to the troubled relation of the Lukan Paul by re-configuring the figure and impact of Paul upon nascent Christianity, with the two leading questions as a driving force. First, 'Who is "Israel" and the "church" for Luke and Luke's Paul' and secondly 'Who is Jesus of Nazareth and who is Paul in relation to both?' The contributors provide challenging new perspectives on approaches to the figure of Paul in recent scholarship as well as in the scholarship of previous generations, 're-figuring' Paul by examining both how he is portrayed in Acts, and how the Pauline figure of Acts may be envisioned within Paul's own writings. Paul and the Heritage of Israel thus accomplishes what no other single volume has done: combining both the 'Paul of Paul' and the 'Paul of Luke' in one seminal volume. >

The Acts of the Apostles: Four Centuries of Baptist Interpretation is a landmark work of research, containing examples of specific ways that Baptists have used Acts in their confessions, sermons, tracts, commentaries, monographs, devotional and denominational literature, speeches, and hymns. Including the entirety of the Acts as translated by Baptist luminary Helen Barrett Montgomery, this commentary beautifully illustrates the diversity of Baptist responses to this book of Scripture, and in so doing, a variety of hermeneutical approaches within the Baptist tradition.

The Bible and Disability: A Commentary (BDC) is the first comprehensive commentary on the Bible from the perspective of disability. The BDC examines how the Bible constructs or reflects human wholeness, impairment, and disability in all their expressions. Biblical texts do envision the ideal body, but they also present visions of the body that deviate from this ideal, whether physically or through cognitive impairments or mental illness. The BDC engages the full range of these depictions of body and mind, exploring their meaning through close readings and comparative analysis. The BDC enshrines the distinctive interpretive imagination required to span the worlds of biblical studies and disability studies. Each of the fourteen contributors has worked at this intersection; and through their combined expertise, the very best of both biblical studies and disability studies culminates in detailed textual work of description, interpretation, and application to provide a synthetic and synoptic whole. The result is a close reading of the Bible that gives long-overdue attention to the fullness of human identity narrated in the Scriptures. Not for sale in the UK.

In "Acts," part of the eighteen-volume Paideia commentary series, leading biblical scholar Mikeal Parsons gleans fresh theological insight into Acts by attending carefully to the cultural and educational context from which it emerges.

Paideia commentaries explore how New Testament texts form Christian readers by:
- Attending to the ancient narrative and rhetorical strategies the text employs
- Showing how the text shapes theological convictions and moral habits
- Commenting on the final, canonical form of each New Testament book
- Focusing on the cultural, literary, and theological settings of the text
- Making judicious use of maps, photos, and sidebars in a reader-friendly format

"Parsons presents a masterful exposition both of the myriad strategies whereby the author of Acts attempted to persuade his original audience and of the ways in which this ancient book continues to speak powerfully to Christian faith in our own day. Readers will find here a treasure trove of insights into Hellenistic rhetorical conventions and their usage in Acts."--John A. Darr, Boston College

"Parsons's commentary on Acts takes an overtly rhetorical approach to the text while not losing sight of its important theological implications. I commend him for focusing his commentary on the final form of the text as it was read by the first readers and recognizing the author as a theologian in his own right. Parsons also provides useful supplemental comments to aid those unfamiliar with the terminology of ancient rhetoric. A number of Parsons's assumptions and conclusions will no doubt prompt significant further discussion."--Stanley E. Porter, McMaster Divinity College

"Parsons deftlyshepherds the reader through Acts of the Apostles in this rich and illuminating commentary. This book will be an ideal companion for students navigating Acts for the first time and a helpful resource for seasoned Acts scholars."--William Sanger Campbell, The College of St. Scholastica

"Mikeal Parsons has been on the forefront of reading the Lukan writings with strategies that combine the best of ancient literary criticism with social-world analyses and socio-rhetorical expertise with biblical-theological acumen. His "Acts" Paideia commentary is his most recent integrative "tour de force"!"--David P. Moessner, University of Dubuque Theological Seminary and University of Pretoria

In this volume Mikeal C. Parsons provides an overview of Luke and Acts, reading Luke and Acts in the context of ancient rhetorical criticism as practiced in the Hellenistic world. Parsons first compares Luke's storytelling with narrative techniques of ancient rhetoric. He next compares Luke's interpretation of Jewish sources within the social conventions of Luke's day. Finally, Parsons profiles Luke's specific evangelistic theological artistry, one in which Luke creatively uses Isaiah to call for the conversion of the Gentiles. The depth and breadth of Parson's chapters root Luke's narrative strategy, interpretive moves, and theological imagination in the pagan, Jewish, and Christian contexts of the period.

Anatomies of the Gospels and Beyond is an edited volume structured around essays that focus on one of the four canonical Gospels (and Acts) and/or theoretical issues involved in literary readings of New Testament narrative. The volume is intended to honor the legacy of R. Alan Culpepper, Emeritus Professor and Former Dean at Mercer University's McAfee School of Theology. The title of the volume (which alludes to the title of Culpepper's ground-breaking monograph, Anatomy of the Fourth Gospel) and the breadth of the essays are apt reflections of his research interests over his academic career of over forty years. The twenty-six contributors are internationally recognized experts in New Testament studies; thus, the essays represent a snapshot of current research.

In this volume Mikeal C. Parsons provides an overview of Luke and Acts, reading Luke and Acts in the context of ancient rhetorical criticism as practiced in the Hellenistic world. Parsons first compares Luke's storytelling with narrative techniques of ancient rhetoric. He next compares Luke's interpretation of Jewish sources within the social conventions of Luke's day. Finally, Parsons profiles Luke's specific evangelistic theological artistry, one in which Luke creatively uses Isaiah to call for the conversion of the Gentiles. The depth and breadth of Parson's chapters root Luke's narrative strategy, interpretive moves, and theological imagination in the pagan, Jewish, and Christian contexts of the period.

As a sequel to the hugely successful Jesus and the Heritage of Israel, this book brings together fourteen internationally acclaimed scholars in antiquities studies and experts on Paul and Luke. The contributors provoke new approaches to the troubled relation of the Lukan Paul by re-configuring the figure and impact of Paul upon nascent Christianity, with the two leading questions as a driving force. First, 'Who is "Israel" and the "church" for Luke and Luke's Paul' and secondly 'Who is Jesus of Nazareth and who is Paul in relation to both?' The contributors provide challenging new perspectives on approaches to the figure of Paul in recent scholarship as well as in the scholarship of previous generations, 're-figuring' Paul by examining both how he is portrayed in Acts, and how the Pauline figure of Acts may be envisioned within Paul's own writings. Paul and the Heritage of Israel thus accomplishes what no other single volume has done: combining both the 'Paul of Paul' and the 'Paul of Luke' in one seminal volume.

Synopsis: Mark's Gospel is much maligned for its redundancy and stylistic sloppiness. But is this indignity justified? The answer to this question hangs not only on the genre of this work but also on the life setting of its target audience. Rather than unwitting slip-ups of an inept writer, Mark's narrative repetitions and temporal dislocations are better understood as rhetorical strategies for a didactive oral performance. There is "method" to Mark's "madness," and the method maps his meaning. In recent decades, some scholars have become enamored with what they see as a generic affinity between Mark's Gospel and fictive literature, particularly ancient romance novels. Could this be the "method" behind Mark's madness? This book offers readers an exciting and profitable journey into two story worlds that likely share a common historical-cultural setting: Mark's "Gospel" and Chariton's "passion of love." Analyzing these works from the vantage point of narrative sequence, Starner identifies two contrasting worldviews: for Chariton, the world is controlled by the goddess Aphrodite who serves as a powerbroker distributing political, economic, and sociological power to agents who use that power for self-serving ends; for Mark, the world is governed by an All-Powerful God who, shockingly, operates from a posture of powerlessness, inviting (not coercing) humans to accept his lordship and urging them to adopt the self-sacrificial, service-oriented program of living that finds its quintessential expression in the historical Jesus of the Gospels. Endorsements: "This book offers an intriguing study of some notable narrative techniques in Mark's Gospel. In contrast to modern speculations of how Mark should have written, Starner's observations are grounded in ancient narration patterns. While noting parallels with Chariton's style, Starner is also careful to highlight some distinctive elements in Mark's account." --Craig Keener Professor of New Testament Palmer Theological Seminary "It is sometimes said that the Gospel of Mark is a clumsy concatenation of stories, thrown together willy-nilly. In Kingdom of Power, Power of Kingdom Rob Starner offers an alternative take: Mark uses the apparent disruptions in sequence, repetitions, and gaps in information to leverage the responses of his readers. Starner's argument is crisp, compelling, and critically important--a must read for anyone who wishes to understand both Mark and the current state of literary scholarship in biblical studies. Mark, like Starner, is anything but clumsy." --Jerry Camery-Hoggatt Professor of New Testament and Narrative Theology Vanguard University Author Biography: Rob Starner is Professor of Greek and New Testament at Southwestern AG University in Waxahachie, Texas.

This book examines visual representations of the public ministry of Christ in scenes unique to the Gospel of Luke. Scenes depicting the birth and suffering of Christ no doubt dominated the visual repertoire of medieval and renaissance artists. Nonetheless, the miracles and teachings of Jesus also inspired numerous depictions, not only during the period of the earliest Christian art but continuing throughout the Italian Renaissance and Baroque periods. The book demonstrates how this 'visual exegesis' might enrich our understanding of Luke's Gospel and at the same time inform the contemporary faith community's interpretation of Scripture. Each of these chapters begins with an overview of the biblical passage and its subsequent interpretation, noting significant rhetorical features and the overarching theological argument of the text, as well as outlining a brief summary of its subsequent interpretation in the ecclesiastical literature. Next, the selected work of art is lent context by a brief biography of the artist, placing the work within the artist's own oeuvre, discussing what is known of the patronage of the specific image, and exploring important social, political and religious factors which may facilitate our understanding of the painting. A stylistic and iconographic analysis is followed by brief hermeneutical reflections about how this visual interpretation might inform the church's reading of Scripture. Illuminating Luke will appeal broadly to students of the Bible and the history of Christian art. Scholars and students interested in the history of biblical interpretation will benefit from this book. Likewise, educated laypersons and pastors will find in its pages rich resources for theological reflection.

The Bible and Disability: A Commentary (BDC) is the first comprehensive commentary on the Bible from the perspective of disability. The BDC examines how the Bible constructs or reflects human wholeness, impairment, and disability in all their expressions. Biblical texts do envision the ideal body, but they also present visions of the body that deviate from this ideal, whether physically or through cognitive impairments or mental illness. The BDC engages the full range of these depictions of body and mind, exploring their meaning through close readings and comparative analysis. The BDC enshrines the distinctive interpretive imagination required to span the worlds of biblical studies and disability studies. Each of the fourteen contributors has worked at this intersection; and through their combined expertise, the very best of both biblical studies and disability studies culminates in detailed textual work of description, interpretation, and application to provide a synthetic and synoptic whole. The result is a close reading of the Bible that gives long-overdue attention to the fullness of human identity narrated in the Scriptures. Not for sale in the UK.

In this volume Mikeal C. Parsons provides an overview of Luke and Acts, reading Luke and Acts in the context of ancient rhetorical criticism as practiced in the Hellenistic world. Parsons first compares Luke's storytelling with narrative techniques of ancient rhetoric. He next compares Luke's interpretation of Jewish sources within the social conventions of Luke's day. Finally, Parsons profiles Luke's specific evangelistic theological artistry, one in which Luke creatively uses Isaiah to call for the conversion of the Gentiles. The depth and breadth of Parson's chapters root Luke's narrative strategy, interpretive moves, and theological imagination in the pagan, Jewish, and Christian contexts of the period.