In comparison to Mark and Luke, the First Gospel contains a striking preponderance of economic language in passages dealing with sin, righteousness, and divine recompense. For instance, sin is described as a debt, and righteous deeds are said to earn wages with God or treasure in heaven. This study analyzes Matthew's economic language against the backdrop of other early Jewish and Christian literature and examines its import for the narrative as a whole. Careful attention to this neglected aspect of Matthew's theology demonstrates that some of the Gospel's central claims about atonement, Jesus' death and resurrection, and divine recompense emerge from this conceptual matrix. By tracing the narrative development of the economic motif, the author explains how Jesus saves his people from their sins and comes to be enthroned as Son of Man, sheds new light on numerous exegetical puzzles, and clarifies the relationship of ethical rigorism and divine generosity.

Stimulated by the signal contributions that New Testament scholar Richard B. Hays has made to Christology and Christian ethics, the essays collected here carry forward conversations involving close studies of particular passages in the Gospels and Epistles and wider-ranging forays into big questions in those fields. Some essays build on Hays's work, pushing forward in new directions on questions of scriptural intertextuality, Christology, and participation in Christ. Others challenge his work on questions of method and substance alike. But all reflect appreciation for the advances made by this giant of twentieth and twenty-first century New Testament scholarship.

In comparison to Mark and Luke, the First Gospel contains a striking preponderance of economic language in passages dealing with sin, righteousness, and divine recompense. For instance, sin is described as a debt, and righteous deeds are said to earn wages with God or treasure in heaven. This study analyzes Matthew's economic language against the backdrop of other early Jewish and Christian literature and examines its import for the narrative as a whole. Careful attention to this neglected aspect of Matthew's theology demonstrates that some of the Gospel's central claims about atonement, Jesus' death and resurrection, and divine recompense emerge from this conceptual matrix. By tracing the narrative development of the economic motif, the author explains how Jesus saves his people from their sins and comes to be enthroned as Son of Man, sheds new light on numerous exegetical puzzles, and clarifies the relationship of ethical rigorism and divine generosity.

This final volume in the successful Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture New Testament series interprets First and Second Thessalonians from within the living tradition of the Church. Nathan Eubank recovers interpretations of these Pauline letters from the ancient and medieval church as he explores their historical and theological significance. Attractively packaged and accessibly written, this commentary series relates Scripture to Christian life today.