This comprehensive, up-to-date introduction to the Old Testament apocryphal books summarizes their context, message, and significance. The first edition has been very well reviewed and widely adopted. It is the most substantial introduction to the Apocrypha available and has become a standard authority on the topic. The second edition has been substantially revised and updated throughout to reflect the latest scholarship. The book includes a foreword by James H. Charlesworth.

Explore the Archaeological Evidence Behind Early Christianity in Ancient Roman CitiesIn this fascinating book, Jason Borges offers an original and engaging analysis of life in the Greco-Roman city as seen through its public spaces:● agoras● temples● baths● prisons● theaters● libraries● cemeteriesDrawing on primary sources and archeological evidence, he explores how these seven key civic stru...

Southwestern Journal of Theology 2025 Book Award (Biblical Reference / Biblical Backgrounds)A fundamental principle of biblical interpretation is the importance of context--historical, literary, and canonical. But an often-neglected source of context for understanding Scripture is the field of archaeology. The physical and cultural world we inhabit affects us deeply, and that was no less true for the original writers and readers of Scriptu...

A fundamental principle of biblical interpretation is the importance of context--historical, literary, and canonical. But an often-neglected source of context for understanding Scripture is the field of archaeology. The physical and cultural world we inhabit affects us deeply, and that was no less true for the original writers and readers of Scripture. Archaeology provides insights into important questions like, What did these believers see day to day? What messages did they receive from t...

Southwestern Journal of Theology 2025 Book Award (Biblical Reference / Biblical Backgrounds)A fundamental principle of biblical interpretation is the importance of context--historical, literary, and canonical. But an often-neglected source of context for understanding Scripture is the field of archaeology. The physical and cultural world we inhabit affects us deeply, and that was no less true for the original writers and readers of Scriptu...

A modern translation with introductions by David A. deSilvaThe Lexham Old Testament Apocrypha includes:· Tobit (Vaticanus and Sinaiticus)· Judith· Greek Esther (Greek)· Wisdom of Solomon· Wisdom of Sirach· Baruch· Letter of Jeremiah· the additions to Daniel (Old Greek and Theodotion), including the Prayer of Azariah, Susanna, and Bel and the Dragon· 1-4 Maccabees· 1-2 Esdras· the ...

Grow in the Scriptures throughout the church year with David deSilva as your mentor.Beginning with Advent and moving through the church year, David deSilva brings his years of experience as a biblical scholar to the church in the form of sermons delivered to his home congregation throughout the church year, now adapted into a thoughtful and inspiring collection of reflections.These reflections, which draw on readings from the Revised Common Lectionary, will...

The gospel is often presented as little more than a "get out of hell free" pass. But is that all there is to it? What made it so compelling that the Apostle Paul would give up everything, enduring hardships and deprivation to preach good news? David deSilva argues that some Christians have unintentionally reduced the gospel to a message Paul would hardly recognize. The "gift of righteousness" is far richer than many of us have dared to imagine!In Transformation: The Heart of Pa...

In this addition to the well-received Paideia series, two respected New Testament scholars offer a practical commentary on James and Jude that is conversant with contemporary scholarship, draws on ancient backgrounds, and attends to the theological nature of the texts.This commentary, like each in the projected eighteen-volume series, proceeds by sense units rather than word-by-word or verse-by-verse. Paideia commentaries explore how New Testament texts form Christian readers by