Among the several prominent themes in the Bible, the story of Israel is one that has attracted recent attention and study. The biblical story of Israel–in its election, sin, exile and restoration–is a finely articulated drama of the glory and theplight of the universal story of humanity and creation. And the story of Jesus, born from the womb of Israel as its Messiah and true seed of Abraham, provides the redemptive solution to Israel's and the world's plight.This book by C. Marvin...

Traditional Christian art depicts Paul the letter writer, pen in hand, attentive to the Spirit. We might think we know better and imagine him pacing in agitation as he rapidly dictates to a secretary his letter to the Galatians. But in reality neither of these pictures is accurate.In Paul's day, producing a letter was a time-consuming and costly business. And we have ample resources from the ancient world to piece together what it must have been like. A secretary was usually part o...

Over 150,000 Copies Sold Worldwide!Understand Scripture on Its Own TermsWhat was clear to the original readers of Scripture is not always clear to us. Because of the cultural distance between the biblical world and our contemporary setting, we often bring modern Western biases to the text. For example:When Western readers hear Paul exhorting women to "dress modestly," we automatically think in terms of sexual modesty. But most...

Christianity Today's 2020 Book of the Year Award of Merit - Biblical StudiesBiblical Foundations Award FinalistWhat does it mean to "read Romans with Eastern eyes"?Combining research from Asian scholars with his many years of experience living and working in East Asia, Brad Vaughn directs our attention to Paul's letter to the Romans. He argues that some traditional East Asian cultural values are closer to t...

Readers' Choice Awards Honorable MentionOne of Nijay Gupta's Best Academic New Testament BooksWho is your Jesus? Matthew's teacher? John's Word made flesh? Hebrews' great high priest? What if it turned out that your Jesus is a composite of your favorite selections from the New Testament buffet, garnished with some Hollywood and Americana?Rediscovering Jesus takes us on a gallery tour of biblical portraits of Jesus, from Mat...

The Bible was written within collectivist cultures. When Westerners, immersed in individualism, read the Bible, it's easy to misinterpret important elements—or miss them altogether. In any culture, the most important things usually go without being said. So to read Scripture well we benefit when we uncover the unspoken social structures and values of its world. We need to recalibrate our vision.Combining the expertise of a biblical scholar and a missionary practiti...

**The apostle Paul was kind of a jerk.**He was arrogant and stubborn. He called his opponents derogatory, racist names. He legitimized slavery and silenced women. He was a moralistic, homophobic killjoy who imposed his narrow religious views on others. Or was he?Randolph Richards and Brandon O'Brien explore the complicated persona and teachings of the apostle Paul. Unpacking his personal history and cultural context, they show how Paul both offended Roman perspectives and scandalized Jewis...

For some of us, the apostle Paul is intimidating, like a distant and difficult uncle. Maybe not someone you'd like to hang out with at a coffee shop on a rainy day. He'd make a scene, evangelize the barista, and arouse looks across the room. For amid-morning latte, we'd prefer Jesus over Paul.But Paul is actually the guy who—from Ephesus to Athens—was the talk of the marketplace, the raconteur of the Parthenon. He knew everyone, founded emerging churches, loved the difficult people, and he...

**Many young Bible scholars are passionate for the Scriptures. But is passion enough?**In A Little Book for New Bible Scholars, Randolph Richards and Joseph Dodson encourage young students of the Bible to add substance to their zeal—the kind of substance that comes from the sweat and toil of hard study. "Just as we should avoid knowledge without love," they write, "we should also avoid love without knowledge."Aimed at beginners, this concise overview offers a wealth of good advice...

The Bible was written within collectivist cultures. When Westerners, immersed in individualism, read the Bible, it's easy to misinterpret important elements—or miss them altogether. In any culture, the most important things usually go without being said. So to read Scripture well we benefit when we uncover the unspoken social structures and values of its world. We need to recalibrate our vision.Combining the expertise of a biblical scholar and a missionary practitioner, Misread...

The apostle Paul was kind of a jerk. He was arrogant and stubborn. He called his opponents derogatory, racist names. He legitimized slavery and silenced women. He was a moralistic, homophobic killjoy who imposed his narrow religious views on others. Or was he? Randolph Richards and Brandon O'Brien explore the complicated persona and teachings of the apostle Paul. Unpacking his personal history and cultural context, they show how Paul both offended Roman perspectives and scandalized Jewish ...

What does it mean to "read Romans with Eastern eyes"?Combining research from Asian scholars with his many years of experience living and working in East Asia, Jackson directs our attention to Paul's letter to the Romans. He argues that some traditional East Asian cultural values are closer to those of the first-century biblical world than common Western cultural values. In addition, he adds his voice to the scholarship engaging the values of honor and shame in part...