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Product Description

This book offers advanced undergraduates, graduate students, and interested laypeople an introduction to a wide range of approaches to Paul that are relevant to, yet go beyond, traditional theological and historical concerns.

Beginning with Warren Carter’s observations on Paul’s primary interactions being with Rome, rather than with the followers of Jesus or first-century Jews, and moving through Steven Friesen’s argument for a different picture of Paul as activist and Mark Nanos’s challenge to prevailing interpretations of 1 Corinthians 9 and Paul’s observance of “the law,” leading New Testament scholars provide helpful surveys of the field and offer new insights and possibilities for further research.

An excellent supplement to standard textbooks, each chapter of this compilation offers suggestions for further reading. The book also includes indices of modern authors, subjects, and ancient sources.

CONTRIBUTORS
Warren Carter, “Paul and the Roman Empire: Recent Perspectives”
Steven J. Friesen, “Paul and Economics: The Jerusalem Collection as an Alternative to Patronage”
Jerry L. Sumney, “Paul and His Opponents: The Search”
Charles H. Cosgrove, “Paul and Ethnicity: A Selective History of Interpretation”
A. Andrew Das, “Paul and the Law: Pressure Points in the Debate”
Mark D. Nanos, “Paul and Judaism: Why not Paul’s Judaism?”
Deborah Krause, “Paul and Women: Telling Women to Shut Up Is More Complicated than You Might Think”
Mark D. Given, “Paul and Rhetoric: A Sophos in the Kingdom of God”

“These outstanding scholars, always stimulating and occasionally provocative, explore the interface between the Pauline letters and certain contemporary interests of the academy, such as empire, economics, ethnicity, patronage, gender issues, rhetoric, and power, in addition to more traditional Pauline subjects. These cutting-edge essays reveal the liveliness of recent, new approaches to Paul, and present an invaluable resource for staying abreast of current discussions.”
—Donald A. Hagner, George Eldon Ladd Professor Emeritus of New Testament, Fuller Theological Seminary

“Paul Unbound is an important collection of essays on Paul and his letters, which seeks to go behind and beyond many of the traditional interpretations of the great Christian apostle. Its eight chapters deal with political, economic, cultural, rhetorical, and religious issues that can be found inherent in Paul's writings, as well as matters of Paul's own self-identity, which its authors believe have not often been treated—or, at least, not often enough or sufficiently considered—in more exegetical and theological treatments. Its topics, of course, cannot be fully explored in such relatively short chapters. Nor are they definitively stated or conclusively explicated. Nonetheless, this small volume of studies constitutes a significant introduction to a wide range of sociological matters reflected in Paul's writings, which call for serious consideration, informed interaction, and judicious response on the part of all NT scholars.”
—Richard N. Longenecker, Professor Emeritus of New Testament, Wycliffe College, University of Toronto

“Paul Unbound provides not only history of scholarship but also a reliable snapshot of the current state of Pauline studies, especially on topics of keen interest in the past several years.
—Dale B. Martin, Woolsey Professor of Religious Studies, Yale University

Reviews

"This informative collection of essays on Paul originated in a 2004 Society of Biblical Literature seminar. The point was to bring together different approaches to Paul, illustrated by responsible scholars. The volume certainly meets that goal. The perennially challenging Paul is studied from beyond the usual categories or perspectives. Topics include Paul’s relationship to Imperial Rome, economic factors in Paul’s theology (e.g., the famous collection), questions of ethnicity, perspectives on women in the context of first-century Greco-Roman society, and various viewpoints on Paul’s view of the law and his relationship to Judaism. Students and scholars will find this a stimulating and thoughtful discussion of Paul from fresh perspectives."
—The Bible Today

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